Goa has contributed immensely to Indian jazz music. Thanks to centuries of Portuguese influence and strong exposure to Western music through church traditions, their musicians were among the first Indians to master Western instruments, especially jazz. Many moved to Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi to make their musical careers and from the fifties onwards, they contributed to introducing swing jazz instrumentation to many popular Bollywood songs in Mumbai.
Being a great fan of ‘Manhattan Transfer’, a multi award winning American vocal group famous for their intricate harmonies, this reviewer wondered if there was any vocal group in Mumbai that did covers of this group and was told by Vasundhara Vee, a leading jazz and soul singer from Mumbai a few years ago that there is a group called ‘The Sassy Songbirds’ in the city that does them proud. The trio comprises Marie Paul, Ella Castellino Atai and Mimosa Almeida Pinto, who not only doubles up on piano and keyboards but is also the composer and arranger behind their scintillating harmonies.
In an evening titled ‘Harmonious Jazz’ at the Experimental Theatre at NCPA, Mumbai, last Saturday, ‘The Sassy Songbirds’ enthralled the sold-out concert with their repertoire of songs mostly from the ‘Great American Songbook’. They were ably accompanied by Russell Fernandes on bass and Adrian D’Souza on drums. Vir Bedi Kaushal accompanied them melodiously on the saxophone in some songs. Apart from the excellent harmonies, all three were very adept at jazz scatting, which stood out in songs such as ‘One Note Samba’ and ‘Scat Awhile’, the latter superbly composed and arranged by Mimosa. Other memorable songs were ‘New York New York’ and Duke Ellington’s ‘Don’t Get Around Much Anymore’, which had Ella and Marie at their best. The up-tempo version of Gershwin’s classic ‘Summertime’ was commendable. Other songs that had excellent harmonies were in Jamiroquai’s ‘Virtual Insanity’ that blended into ‘Autumn Leaves’ as well as in ‘Boy from Ipanema’ and ‘Caravan’.
The evening’s surprise guest, Dr Vernon Sequeira, offered a deep and soulful interpretation of ‘Moon River’ and joined the trio on some songs in the latter half of the concert. His presence added warmth and texture and one could easily imagine him contributing effectively to a future tribute to ‘The Manhattan Transfer’.
The group concluded with ‘Fly Me to the Moon’ and returned for an encore of ‘Life is Good’, ending an evening that reaffirmed their place as one of Mumbai’s most accomplished contemporary vocal jazz ensembles.