Vijay Iyer & Prashant Bhargava – Radhe Radhe: Rites of Holi (2014)

A fascinating collaboration between film director Prashant Bhargava and jazz maestro Vijay Iyer, giving you a beautiful impression of what must be the world’s most psychedelic festival: the Hindu rites of Holi. Watch huge, densely packed crowds drowning in exuberant colours and performing all kinds of scenic rituals.
Posted both in jazz and classical; anyone who is familiar with Iyer knows that in his music the two genres can hardly be told apart. As you will hear in this movie.

A journey of devotion for the goddess Radha. Loosely following the episodic template of “Le Sacre du Printemps”, “Radhe Radhe is also a ballet of some sorts: a performative encounter between live music and film, between lived experience and myth, the self and the transformed self, winter and spring

Tracks:

PART I: ADORATION

01. Dawn – 3.25
02. Promise – 3.13
03. Summoning – 1.43
04. Spring Fever – 1.51
05. Procession – 1.53
06. Colors – 3.41

PART II: TRANSCENDENCE

07. Thirst – 3.08
08. Intoxication – 3.09
09. Exaltation – 2.14
10. Spirits – 1.43
11. Rituals - 2.22
11. Purging Rites – 4.24

Performers:

International Contemporary Ensemble

Eric Lamb & Laura Jordan Cocks - flute, alto flute, piccolo
Joshua Rubin - clarinet, bass clarinet
Rebekah Heller - bassoon, contrabassoon
Gareth Flowers, Amir Elsaffar - trumpet
Jennifer Curtis - violin
Kyle Armbrust - viola
Kivie Cahn-Lipman - cello
Cory Smythe - piano (right channel)
Ross Karre - percussion (right channel)
Tyshawn Sorey - percussion (left channel), drum Set
Adam Sliwinski - conductor
Vijay Iyer - composer, piano (left channel), electronics