Kolam, 2001

Mark Morris
Zakir Hassain
Ethan Iverson
India

Instrumentation:
cello, bass, piano, tabla (Indian drums)

Kolam, a piece for 10 dancers, was choreographed by Mark Morris. Morris’s love of Indian music and dance have led him to visit India on multiple occasions and the musical score for Kolam is based on Indian musical motifs. The score was commissioned by the Silk Road Project in 2001 and composed by Ethan Iverson, Music Director of the Mark Morris Dance Group, and Zakir Hussain, renowned virtuoso of the tabla [TAH blah] (set of drums used in North Indian classical music). Kolam is structured like a classical Indian raga [RA ga] (a mode providing melodic material for improvisation). It starts softly, becomes increasingly dynamic throughout, and concludes with a whirlwind of intensity.