Finding the Groove: Pioneers of Jazz in India 1930s-1960s
A series of exhibitions on early jazz musicians in India.
American Institute of Indian Studies
The exhibitions are based on archival materials collected by Naresh Fernandes at the Archives and Research Center for Ethnomusicology, AIIS
Jazz was born in the US melting-pot town of New Orleans in the early years of the 20th century. It mashed up the syncopated rhythms and bluesy melodies of slaves from several parts of Africa, the lush harmonies of European classical music, and Iberian influences from nearby Latin America.
No one could predict that by the 1950s, jazz would become an important ingredient in Hindi film music, putting a spring in India’s step. Indian musicians also worked to find a way to create a fusion of Hindustani classical music and jazz. Their experiments preceded similar Western efforts by two decades.
Poster of Leon AbbeyOriginal Source: Jehangir Dalal
Jazz arrives in India
African American visitors
The earliest traveling groups of African American musicians in India in the mid-1930s were led by Herb Flemming and Leon Abbey.
Various forms of American popular culture had travelled to the subcontinent during the nineteenth century, setting the stage for jazz to flourish in India. Prominent among them were minstrelsy shows by Dave Carson and his troupe from the 1860s.
Portrait image of Leon AbbeyOriginal Source: Jehangir Dalal
The Taj and Leon Abbey
In 1935, Bombay's premier hotel, the Taj Mahal hired the first all-African-American jazz band to play in India. Led by Leon Abbey, a violinist from Minnesota, the eight-member band was staffed by experienced musicians who had performed alongside some real legends.
Crickett Smith, Roy Butler, Teddy Weatherford
American trumpet player Crickett Smith led a band at Bombay’s Taj Mahal Hotel which included several Indian musicians.
Teddy Weatherford went on to settle in India and his band formed a bridge between the African-American musicians and the Indian musicians.
Green brothersOriginal Source: Mark Green
Green Brothers
Notable among the Indian pioneers were the Anglo-Indian brothers Henry and Hal Green who formed the eight-member band Elite Aces in Bangalore in 1933, performing what one observer described as "dance music with a jazz accent".
Josic Menzie
The multi-instrumentalist Josic Menzie joined the band at the Taj, playing alongside Weatherford and the Green brothers.
In his later years, Menzie conducted music classes, helping scores of young Mumbai musicians discover a passion for jazz and Western classical music.
Frank Fernand, Micky Correa, Chic Chocolate and Rudy Cotton were part of the jazz scene in Bombay at the same time, performing at the Taj, Green's Hotel and other venues. They collaborated with each other as well as with Teddy Weatherford.
Frank Fernand, Rudy Cotton, Chic Chocolate and Micky Correa at various times and in various places.
A poster of Ken MacOriginal Source: Pamela McCarthy
The Dance Band Era: Ken Mac
Ken Mac, an Anglo Indian, styled himself as the "pioneer of dance bands in India". Mac played the drums in his first concert in 1922. However he rose to fame as a bandleader.
He made more than two dozen discs that showcased his elegant dance music with a touch of swing.
Johnny Baptist
Johnny Baptist's first big break was in 1940 when he joined Rudy Cotton's band at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Bombay. He also played alongside Crickett Smith and Chic Chocolate. Proficient on the violin, clarinet, and the saxophone, Baptist formed his own band in 1948.
Brochure of a Paquita and Zarate performanceOriginal Source: Ramona Martin
Paquita and Zarate
In 1940s Calcutta, several musicians began to make recordings of jazz and swing tunes from Hollywood movies. Prominent among them were the duo known as Paquita and Zarate.
Portrait of Ken CumminsOriginal Source: Christine Correa and the Correa Family
Ken Cummins
Ken Cummins was Bombay's hottest jazz violinist.
In the 1940s, Lucilla Pacheco was one of the few women instrumentalists on the Bombay jazz scene, playing in the all-star band of Mickey Correa at the Taj Mahal Hotel and with the band leader Ken Mac. She later joined the Hindi film industry and performed regularly with the arranger Anthony Gonsalves. She was part of the famous Menezes family that produced many jazz musicians. Lucilla was married to George Pacheco.
Mosin Menezes pictured here with guitarist Armanda Vitale, the drummer Max Mascarenhas, saxophonist George Pacheco and vocalist Karen WeileOriginal Source: Mosin Menezes
George Pacheco and Mosin Menezes
Pianist Mosin Menezes began his musical career in 1947 with Colombo's Swing Stars. He later joined George Pacheco's band as a pianist.
Saxophonist George Pacheco and Mosin Menezes played together in a band in the 1960s.
Mosin MenezesOriginal Source: Mosin Menezes
George Pacheco on sax, Percy Dias on drums, Mosin Menezes on piano, and Paul Gonsalves on bass.
"Jazzy" Joe Pereira
Joe Pereira, known as "Jazzy Joe" started performing in 1941, aged only 14, in a band in Lahore’s Stiffle’s Hotel. He spent much of his career playing in clubs across Lahore, Calcutta, and Bombay.
Jazzy Joe seen here playing the saxophone at Volga's, Bombay 1959.
Dizzy Sal with Dave BrubeckOriginal Source: Maria Saldanha Vinda
Dizzy Sal
The talented pianist Edward Saldanha aka Dizzy Sal so impressed Dave Brubeck, that he got him a scholarship to study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, 1959.
Dizzy Sal seen here with Paul Desmond and Dave Brubeck.
Toni Pinto Jazz QuartetOriginal Source: Toni Pinto
Toni Pinto
Pianist Toni Pinto was a noted technical virtuoso. He led the band at the Ambassador Hotel in Bombay for many years. Later, after his stint at the Ambassador, he would play in the Gulf for some years.
Pam CrainAmerican Institute of Indian Studies
Pam Crain: The Empress of Park Street
Pam Crain was one of the finest jazz musicians India has produced. She started recording in 1954, with a pop band, but would go on to make her mark as one of the most expressive jazz vocalists in the country. In 1955, she cut this disc with Jimmy Ravestee.
Braz GonsalvesOriginal Source: Prashant Panjiar/Gonsalves family
Braz Gonsalves
Braz Gonsalves, a saxophonist, shot to fame while performing at the Venice restaurant, Astoria Hotel, Bombay in the 1960s. He played both the alto and the soprano sax and was deemed "the most sophisticated jazz musician India had ever produced" at the time.
Asha Puthli at Jazz Yatra 1978Original Source: Ratan Batliboi / Niranjan Jhaveri Jazz Collection
Asha Puthli
Asha Puthli is most famous for her sultry vocals on Ornette Coleman's Science Fiction album, for which she won the prestigious 'Downbeat critics poll award' alongside Ella Fitzgerald. Trained in Hindustani classical vocals and opera, Puthli began her jazz lessons by listening to the Voice of America on the radio.
Seen here is Asha Puthli at Jazz Yatra 1978.
Louis BanksOriginal Source: Navroze Contractor
Louis Banks
Louis Banks was born to play to play jazz: his father, the trumpet player George Banks, named his son after his idol, Louis Armstrong. But the young man showed a great affinity for the piano, and would grow up to become India’s best-known jazz keyboardist.
He had a long initial stint in Calcutta, leading a variety of formations, including a band at the Hindustan Hotel and the Louis Banks Brotherhood at the Blue Fox restaurant.
He performed with Sangam alongside Carnatic vocalist Rama Mani and saxophonist Braz Gonsalves. They played at several festivals across Europe in the late 1980s. He has since been at the heart of several fusion projects.
Curation and content: Naresh Fernandes
Content editors: Shubha Chaudhuri, Ayesha Sheth, Ishita Mehta
Project Director: Shubha Chaudhuri
Based on Taj Mahal Foxtrot by Naresh Fernandes, and
materials contributed by Naresh Fernandes at the Archives and Research Center for Ethnomusicology, American Institute of Indian Studies.
Acknowledgments: Jehangir Dalal, the families of Micky Correa, Chic Chocolate and Frank Fernand. Pam McCarthy, Ratan Batliboi, Navroze Contractor, Prashant Panjiar, Mosin Menezes, the Pacheco family, Maria Saldanha Vinda, Christopher Pereira, Grace Silveira and all contributors to the Taj Mahal Foxtrot.
