Aman Pal, Tabla Player and vocalist: ”˜Music was in my destiny’

By Manju Mittal

Aman Pal is a well trained expert tabla player and vocalist and he has established himself in Sydney as a versatile performer, a skilled tablist who sings soulful sufi songs. Aman’s subtle command in ragas, the melodic structures, their rhythmic disciplines and his mastery on distinctive techniques of tabla is just superb. Aman has a voice that demonstrates a pleasant experience with its range for the audience. Aman has performed in many venues in Sydney and has many concerts to his credit.

Aman chats to us about his passion of music and his love for tabla. He shares how he finds inner peace playing tabla and the importance of sharing culture and music, his own personal musical journey, his future plans as we touched many other aspects of his busy life. Aman is currently busy performing live on social media during COVID-19 crises. Aman was gracious to agree for an exclusive chit chat with TIDU readers:

Aman, tell us a bit about yourself and did you have any formal music training when you were a child?

My parents are originally from Punjab and my father migrated to London at an early age after getting married in India when he settled down in London. I was born and raised in London. From my childhood I have been intensely involved in music under the guidance of my father. I belong to a musical family and grew up in the environment of classical music so it seems that music was in my destiny. My mother is a vocalist and my father, a tabla player. My parents were involved in Kirtan for many generations and they worked in the community to make sure that the coming generations know about their heritage and culture and hence my musical journey started from there.

I remember at the age of seven I used to play beats on random things spontaneously and my father noticed my interest and put me into formal tabla training. So I trained under the guidance of my father Amrit Pal and Guru Ustad Tari Khan. I tried to follow and observed my guru very closely. My first solo performance was at a private function ”˜Shri Baba Hari Vallabh’ in Jalandhar, India when I was 17 years old. I performed in front of a large audience and felt extremely honoured by the acknowledgement that night. Essentially whatever I am today or will become can be credited to my Guru and my father.

What made you move to Australia from London?

I moved to Australia because of my wife Shom, who was living in Australia. We got together through music. I met her when I was in London through social media platform. I had been a member of one of the Karaoke app on web where I used to sing with Shom. We fell in love while dating long-distance, and finally met face to face for the first time when she came down to London. My parents blessed us and approved of our plans to get married and I moved to Australia in 2017 for good. I can only say that settling down in Australia has been the best decision of my life.

What is your most cherished performance till date and what does the tabla represent to you?

All my concerts have been well received by music lovers in Sydney. Last year I performed at ”˜Poetic Evening with Deepti Naval’ organised by SAI Creative Art Network SCREAN Australia in Sydney and Wollongong. The audience were very warm, I felt really special when Deepti Navalji herself praised my work. I felt rewarded. Another Sufi concert where I performed recently by Road2 Bollywood is also very special to me.

Well, tabla is one special musical instrument of India that is unique to our culture, Australia is a multicultural country and I hope that through my skill I can create more awareness to this ancient tradition of India.

What does music means to you and who inspires you?

Music is my life; I don’t know anything else besides music. Music offers me relaxation from day to day life challenges. I forget all my worries when I am lost in the music world. I have been a great admirer of my brother Prakash, who is a great singer as well, he motivates and   inspires me a lot. Also I am a family friend of well known Punjabi singer Hans Raj Hans in London who has always encouraged me to pursue my dreams.

In Bollywood I am highly influenced by my most favourite actor Amitabh Bachchan and singer legend Kishore Kumar, they are the best Jodi for me, perfect combination in Indian films. I grew up listening to Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and my favourite singers are Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal. In the newer generation of singers, Arjit Singh is my favourite.

Tell us about your DZYR Band and your experience working with other artists?

The desire to create the band started over a ”˜Sangeet Mehfil’ with a group of talented singers and musicians. Since then, the DZYR band has been consistently producing musical shows the way no one has seen or heard in Sydney. Now DZYR is not just a band, it’s a Brand. It’s a representative of artists here in Sydney, helping to provide a great platform for artists and linking them for future opportunities.

Working with all my co- artists have been a great learning experience for me. I had so much fun working with them and exchange ideas.

How would you describe yourself as a musician, tell us about your future goals and message to your friends here?

I think of myself as an art lover and a student of music. I feel there is so much to learn. I wish to thank all my friends and co-artists and music lovers for their encouragement. I think we should teach our younger generation about music and that can be on way for them to connect to Indian culture. My future goal is to perform Interstate here in Australia and other countries like Canada, USA and UK.

It was a pleasure talking to Aman, He has come a long way from his budding days. Sydney is lucky to have Aman Pal, a disciplined and a dedicated artist, though he has been born and lived abroad all his life, he has not forgotten his roots. We sincerely wish him best of luck in all his future endeavours. Do stay in touch with Aman and his performances and projects via his facebook by following his page ”˜Dzyr band’.

 

 

 

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