If you’re an aspiring musician who’s dreamt about studying at the prestigious Berklee School of Music, here’s your chance to get a taste of what lessons are like at one of the world’s best institutions for music. From August 22 to 26, the Berklee India Exchange will be conducting a five-day vocal workshop at New Delhi. Annette Philip, the founder of the programme, tells us more about the workshop and what it includes. Excerpts from a conversation:
How did the idea of a separate institute for Indian music come about?
I graduated from Berklee and joined the faculty right after. I felt that there was a little bit of Indian music| but not really a performing Indian ensemble. The college was very open to the idea of having one. Then I met another Indian at Berklee named Clint Valladares. We decided to invite some artists, create a platform and together, we co-founded the Berklee India Exchange. It is an institute within Berklee College of Music and is a platform for sharing the spirit of India with the world, and it will also take the world back to India through music education and workshops. Berklee India Ensemble is the core content producer. We do a lot of music videos. We've done collaborations with musicians like Vijay Prakash, Shreya Ghoshal and Shankar Mahadevan. We also hope to submit some of our work to the Grammys this year. We're trying to create jobs for all those interested in Indian music.
Does the ensemble have members from other countries as well?
We have students from countries around the world who have participated — Bulgaria, China, Pakistan, Jordan, Israel and France. Indian art and music are so rich that so many people are interested and we want to be inclusive.
Tell us about the upcoming vocal workshop. What can the applicants expect?
We started doing workshops in India and other countries in 2015. Every year, we have a different theme like electronic music or progressive rock. But this year, we received a lot of requests for a vocal workshop. So, we decided to put together a five-day boot camp called Vocal Intensive in New Delhi from August 22 to 26. It will be an immersive programme covering vocal health, vocal technique, vocal anatomy, improvisation, ear training, harmony and arrangement. At the end of the workshop, participants will perform with the Berklee clinicians.
How is this workshop going to help applicants grow in their music career?
One way is by getting into a daily regimen. We will be doing vocal warm-ups, warm-downs and other exercises. We will teach them how to make the best of their voice. For musicians who do a lot arranging, we will teach them simple tools and harmony that they can use. They will also be exposed to music from different parts of the world. We will have discussions on vocal percussion, nervousness, self-confidence and how to brand oneself in the market. It is also important to understand the anatomy of the human body so that we may learn how to make the best use of it.
