For Béla Fleck, performing in an international all-star ensemble has several benefits.
“Playing with different people certainly brings out different qualities in a player,” Fleck said. “In this case, there’s an opportunity for some beauty, a connection to the Indian musical language and a lot of improv.”
Fleck, Edgar Meyer and Zakir Hussain, along with Rakesh Chaurasia, will perform at the “As We Speak” concert at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 2 at the Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel. “As We Speak” is the name of the quartet’s album.
Fleck, who has won 15 Grammy Awards, is a banjo legend. Hussain is a tabla player, Meyer is a double bassist and Chaurasia is a bansuri Indian flute player.
“We knew right away that the band had a ton of potential, especially when Rakesh joined in,” Fleck said. “We can have so many more textures and colors now. It’s an interesting mix of soothing energy and very exciting hot playing. We try to be very balanced in how much each person does and how it all fits together. There is a lot of joy that we experience together playing music, and hopefully that puts warm energy into the crowd, which they can take home with them.”
Fleck, 65, said the band is a great vehicle to explore different genres.
“I love learning new stuff and experiencing different musical languages on the banjo,” Fleck said.
Fleck became interested in the banjo when he heard the theme song from “The Beverly Hillbillies.”
Fleck said the theme was musician Earl Scruggs making a silly song very serious, at least in the banjo department.
“Then I was fortunate to study with Tony Trischka,” Fleck said. “If Earl created the tradition nearly single-handed, Tony developed a whole new set of strategies to use it for self-expression.”
Fleck often performs with his wife, Abigail Washburn, a banjo player.
“She comes from the old-time world and I come from bluegrass,” Fleck said. “Those two scenes are so different from what an outsider might realize. But we meet in the creative middle and manage to find a way to make music we both love, and just with banjos.”
For more, visit thecenterpresents.org.
