A new sound

Q&A: Sonya Mazumdar, CEO, EarthSync

EarthSync, a world music record label based in Chennai, produces root music, bringing folk, tribal and native music genres together. The label’s maiden album — Laya Project — featured artistes from countries that were affected by the tsunami in 2004. EarthSync CEO Sonya Mazumdar talks about the third annual EarthSync festival, which took place in Chennai on May 30, as well as other forthcoming projects.

Laya Project was a success in large parts due to the fact that artistes from tsunami affected countries came together for it. In keeping with that tradition, what did you offer in the third edition of the EarthSync festival?
This year, we have two great music groups. Shoshan is a band which features Shye Ben Tzur, an acclaimed Israeli composer and music producer based in north India, and Rajasthani vocalists and percussionists. The second group is Kartick & Gotam, which presented a re-mix of EarthSync’s folk productions and musicians. This event was ticketed at Rs 400 per pass.

What are the challenges of working with niche music genres?
EarthSync focuses on folk and traditional forms of music but we work on sustainable assistance. Through our productions and albums, we give a platform and infrastructure to musicians. Nobody knew, before we cut an album, that Sufi singers existed in south India (Their album Nagore Sessions features three dargah singers from the district of Nagapattinam in southern Tamil Nadu). We also have an extensive distribution network in quite a few countries. EarthSync is a profit-making company and we are privately funded. Apart from us, there are a lot of independents who are doing amazing work with musicians from the interiors, but they have limited resources.

Why is that most of EarthSync’s shows are premiered in Chennai?
I’m not opposed to shows travelling to other cities and countries. In fact, the live show of Laya Project has gone through several repeats in Mumbai, Israel and Australia. But I have always wanted EarthSync to host the main events in Chennai. The city has a rich musical past but it seems to lose out on live music performances since most bands perform in other cities and not in Chennai.

Raw folk music is largely found in the interiors of the country. Do you go looking for it?
Artistes have a way of finding us and we have a way of finding them. At the same time, we do carry out a lot of research. In the process, we find some beautiful, unexpected sounds. For example, an interesting project from outside the country, Voice Over the Bridge, featured artistes from Myanmar. In the next two months we will release albums featuring the artistes who performed at the live show on May 30.