*This arrangement is not yet completed
Program Notes
Jahaaṅ translates roughly to, “the place where…” It is this sense of both distance and possibility that I wanted to convey in these arrangements of folk songs from different states and languages within India.
This final movement, Kuttanadan Punjayile (Malayalam) is about longing for home on so many levels: In the most literal sense, it describes the exuberant snake boat races around the festival of Onam in Kerala (one of India’s southernmost states) in a classic ‘fight song’. And yet, most people who encounter this arrangement of the piece are likely not current residents of Kerala. They are dispersed around the world, thousands of miles from those lush green waterways, where coming back home is more than a simple journey of a few miles — it is a journey that often can only be taken through memory.
Recording
(archival recording will be available after the premiere)
Special Performance Requirements
This work is designed for a standard SATB chorus — no special knowledge of Indian music or styles is required to perform this music — extensive audio guides are available to help with pronunciation/diction.
These pieces are designed to be quite similar to the original songs, which means that it is possible to dance to them, to add Indian folk instruments, et al. Please feel free to augment as you would like, and to be creative with your performances of this work.
Audio Guide
(audio guides are available — please contact us if you have purchased this work and would like to use the audio guides.)
There are three versions of this song that spoke to me for different reasons as I created this arrangement:
- This recording, by the Thayir Sadam Project, is fully in Malayalam, and full of unabashed joy. You can feel the pride of Keralans singing about the place where they live.
- This iconic recording by Vidya Vox has that tinge of longing, and is combined with her original English lyrics. You can hear the way the song is framed: even though it is technically shot in Kerala, she is singing it from the perspective of someone who misses the place she is singing about.
- This is a very deep cut, from a movie soundtrack and I think it is probably closest to how the song existed originally. I’m adding it to the mix so that you can hear the rousing ‘fight song’ nature of it — and also, this is the only place where the third verse of my arrangement can be found (at around 1:00). While in this rendition, the words “We don’t know the meaning of defeat, we will not bow our heads” has a defiant feeling, I think it comes from a more vulnerable place in the context of my arrangement.
Also, since Malayalam is notoriously difficult to pronounce for non-native speakers, these three versions will help you hear around the language. Once you have it on your tongue, it is such a rewarding language to sing in.
If your choir is performing this piece, do take the extra step of asking around to see if there are any native speakers of Malayalam in your circles. Just being able to physically be in a room with someone who speaks the language will help demystify a lot of the subtleties of the language.
Premiere/Performances
Jahaaṅ was premiered on March 16, 2025 at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by Jenny Wong.
