American Raga

Broto Roy, EMI-India recording artist, was born into a prominent musical family of Calcutta, India where his great-grandfather Rajanikanto was one of India's greatest songwriters and his uncle Dilip is a popular singing star and constant influence. From the age of six Broto began to learn Indian classical music from legendary Indian Tabla drum maestro Bidyut Banerjee. At the age of 16, Broto moved to the US where he studied composition and earned a B.A. in liberal arts from the College of William & Mary. Broto's first release in the US was accompanying guitarist Sanjay Mishra - on the CD "The Crossing" which has sold extensively. Also, along with his parents and sister he formed the ensemble "GANGA", named after the holy river Ganges, which performs the traditional songs and music from Bengal, India. An American and European tour followed with performances in Stockholm, Berlin, and Bremen Germany. From 2000 onwards Broto began performing at festivals with his own group featuring his original compositions from his debut album "American Raga" which many musicians claim as an important influence. After three more years Broto released "Total Immersion - Live at the Kennedy Center" under his indie label Buzkhashi. Beginning in summer 2002, Broto toured his own trio in support of the CD and audiences were enthralled by the linking of subtle Indian rhythms and Indian singing with elements of modern jazz and rock. Over the years, Broto, hailed as a "fusioneer" in the history of world music, carved out a dominant, vibrant presence on the international platform, championing diversity spanning a wide range of genres – from traditional Indian classical music to jazz. His third CD "Live at the Lowell Festival" (near Boston, USA) was released in 2003 (Buzkhashi) by the Broto Roy Trio featuring the great Indian sarodist Aashish Khan and violinist Shashi Dhar. Ganga's CD "Setting Down Roots" was released in '08 (Buzkhashi). EMI-India released "American Raga" with worldwide distribution by Virgin Records in '09. The latest 2011 release of Ganga's CD "Bringing It Home" is a compilation of live tracks from their concerts at the Library of Congress' Coolidge auditorium; Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art - New York City; Festival of American Folklife on July 4th - Washington DC, etc. On June 23rd and 25th, 2011 Broto performed at the Festival Musiques du Monde a Essaouira in the kingdom of Morocco. In 2011 for the 10th anniversary of September 11th, he played at the Washington National Cathedral's "Concert to Heal" in Washington DC. Also a dedicated teacher, Broto has performed with his students at The Kennedy Center and lectured at colleges and universities such as Sussex College, New Jersey; Mount Holyoke; Colgate University; Yale University; University of South Carolina at Columbia; State University of New York at Syracuse and Oswego; and eight campuses of Pennsylvania State University from Erie to Pittsburgh. Summer festival performances with the ensemble include Montpelier Jazz Festival (10/5/12); National Folk Festival, Michigan USA; Festival of India; Festival of American Folklife; Kerrville Festival, Texas and many others. Gifted as an Indian tabla virtuoso, Broto is also a distinguished solo classical percussionist of great ability and erudition. In between a series of group performances he has also appeared in a number of prestigious solo percussion recitals and guest performances on CDs with guitarists Fareed Haque (of Garaj Mahal fame), Sanjay Mishra (Jerry Garcia); renowned jazz guitarist Paul Bollenback; organist Joey DeFrancesco; saxophonist Ron Holloway; sarodist Aashish Khan; sitarists Krishna Bhatt, Subrata Roy Chowdhury, Indrajit Roy Chowdhury, and Grateful Dead member Bob Weir (with the Sanjay Mishra Band) and many more. The National Endowment for the Arts awarded Broto two teaching grants in 1986 and 1993 and he is the holder of the '05 Master and Apprentice grant from the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. While in orbit in May of '01 space tourist Dennis Tito played Broto's first CD "American Raga" aboard the International Space Station. Among his charity work, Broto composed the song "Let Us Fly" for the Art & Drama Therapy Institute of Washington, DC 's disabled and mentally handicapped clients. CNN World News broadcast the premiere of "Let Us Fly" on July 17 and 18, '04 and said his was "a story of amazing determination to be heard and recognized" and called him "Grammy bound".