Pazhani Subramania Pillai (mridangam), Joe Morello (drums), Dave Brubeck (piano), 1958, Chennai

We are lucky to have found this incredible recording. The original clip is from the "Palani Subramania Pillai Mridangam Institute" YouTube Channel, direct link here    • Sri Palani Subramania Pillai Mridangam Joe...   Here's a discussion forum thread on "Rasikas.org" dedicated towards this amazing collaboration https://www.rasikas.org/forums/viewto... Some context to the meeting! This meet-up occurred in 1958 in Chennai. In the original clip (reference above), Pazhani starts with an incredible Thani-avarthanam (mridangam solo); however, this clip is dedicated towards the rest of the clip where the actual collaboration occurs. A quick glance at the photos reveals something amazing: Semmangudi is a part of the festivities (the bald man with the glasses in the first picture next to Pazhani, followed by Semmangudi sitting and singing at 11:52; however, no clips exist with Semmangudi singing). Interestingly, there is a 1958 Music Academy slip of Semmangudi's iconic RTP in Sankarabharnam which is also from 1958 on this MyCarnatic channel :) Joe Morello (1928-2011) himself was a decorated American drummer and most known for being a part of the "Dave Quartet Band". Wikipedia links for Joe and Dave Brubeck https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Mor... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Br... Here is a detailed write-up on how the group's visit to India influenced their music moving forward, including how they released their iconic album "Time-out" in 1959, just a year after visiting India https://musicaficionado.blog/2019/12/... Link to Time-Out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Ou...) "Take Five", the iconic single from "Time-Out", is known as the biggest-selling jazz single ever. Here is a write-up on the piece https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Take_Five An excerpt from the MusicAficianado article: "Various accounts tell different stories about the origin of Take Five, but they all point to Joe Morello’s musical experiences in India. Some say Indian jazz drummer Leslie Godinho introduced him to the rhythm, others identify mridangam (a double sided Indian hand drum) maestro Palani Subramania Pillai as the one who did the trick. Either way, it is certain that the complexity of Indian rhythms played a major role in Morello’s playing of the Take Five groove, one of the most addictive and best known drum patterns ever to be recorded. More from Desmond’s diary: “Another session with Indian musicians at All India Radio – pretty much a mutual admiration society for rhythm men. Joe impressed by hand technique, odd meters (5, 7, 11). They were impressed by things that should be simple by comparison but apparently aren’t, to them: 2 against 3, etc, played by one drummer.”" As per the Wikipedia links, this was a part of the group's 1958 U.S. Department of State tour of Europe and Asia, and African-American bassist Eugene Wright joined the group prior to the tour. The group visited Poland, Turkey, India, Ceylon, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq on behalf of the U.S. Government. After returning to the US at the end of the tour, the group released a record titled "Calcutta Blues" which includes snippets of the collaboration with Pazhani. It can be found here https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00... We hope you cherish this clip. It's an amazing realization of the "East" meeting the "West" to produce incredible, everlasting music. Enjoy.