They say life is like a piano , what you get depends on how you play !
Well , I can't agree more !
My name is Harsha Jade & this is my music story
It was 1989 , I'd accompanied my Father to Delhi - he was at the time a senior project manager at BHEL coordinating with Siemens . He was a very intuitive amateur musician & an engineer .I'd never been out of our little township , a 5 star hotel stay was daunting ! In the evenings , a short bald man in a cream suit used to play the piano in the lobby . I remember being instantly mesmerised with the tone , music , his fingers briskly moving ..and the gleaming keys of the grand .
I had his playing recorded on tape before we returned home . That became my only tool , my aid . I imitated it in every way possible for a year . Piano playing at the time was obscure
My father's friend who was an amateur choir master strongly recommended that I be trained formally . After an aural test , I was accepted by JC MARTHAND , a sought after pianist / teacher at Hyderabad ( also founder of twin cities music foundation) . I was introduced to pieces of Bach , Haydn , Mozart ..sometimes Schumann or Debussy , I breezed through the Exams. Here at the Bangalore school of music my teachers Joan Willoughby , Mariola Tauro, prof Radislav kwapil hugely helped me
I come from a very diverse & secular musical background - from MS subbulaxmi to Beethoven & Elton john I soaked it all up . With a few friends I started playing in our local club as an accompanist to singers , we mainly did pop/ rock covers . Recitals & gigs gave me exposure , confidence & identity. Today , Vladimir Ashekanazy , Martha Argerich , chick corea, Joe Sample , Yanni, Bill Evans , Clayderman , Shivkumar Sharma, Amjad Ali khan , zakir Hussain and so many icons to learn from !
Like most families , I had to endure a course in Engg and had to work for a while . It was now or never , a battle between love & pragmatism , an MNC job & the Piano , between faith & economic safety . I'd always been an avid reader , writings of OSHO, Russel & lives of great musicians helped me have clarity but mainly musician friends & mentors like Mr M B PRAKASH , an accordionist gave me courage
The isolation , Career shift , relearning , financial ups & downs were all confusing ...but I was 27 , willing for it all & didn't have a Plan B !!! I was happy accompanying & teaching piano . Strangely I didn't dream of a solo career until later .
Inspiration emanates from the great composers ,jazz improvisation , collabs with artists , travel , personal experiences and people !
After 23 years of music as my deepest faculty & 9 years professionally over 500 gigs & recitals ,I've realised that with great love comes courage, passion , discipline and above all a faith , without love there's no music ! The boundaries & genres are blurred for me today as I suspend judgements when I listen to a song !!
Very nicely written, it indeed takes a lot of courage to follow our passion. Kudos to you and all the best👍
And I quote “a battle between love & pragmatism” well quite embellishes your devotion towards music. I hope I can follow the same. Keep it up Harsha . Best wishes!