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In her own sweet space

Pamela Hall, of Jazz channel, Riff, talks about India's eclectic music culture

PHOTO: S. THANTHONI

JUST JAZZ Pamela Hall

It is easy to identify Pamela Hall with Riff. She was in no way connected with WorldSpace when the satellite-based digital radio services provider launched this jazz channel over six years ago, but her contribution to Riff has been immense. When she took over as its programme director five years ago, there "were 500 jazz compositions in the database, and now it is 5,000".

She is always looking to add to this collection. It, however, does not mean she is in a mood to accept creations that at best resemble jazz. For a composition to qualify, it has to meet high standards set by legendary jazz musicians. She admits she looks to the style of these "key musicians" for a definition of this musical form. Having had opportunities to travel to the hotspots of jazz (in the Americas), she grew up on a rich diet that included the `scat-singing' and instrumental brilliance of John Birks Gillespie, the highly evolved improvisations of pianist and composer Thelonious Monk, the emotion-driven singing of Billie Holiday, the `three-octave vocal range' of Ella Fitzgerald and the awesome genius of Duke Ellington.

However, she is much more grateful to her parents for her musical taste. As diehard jazz enthusiasts, they would often `club-hop' in New York to listen to these legends and on many occasions Pamela went along with them.

Her natural ability to recognise good jazz music and vast experience garnered from stints as music director and jockey for terrestrial radio stations (primarily those based in Washington and New York) influenced WorldSpace to appoint her to the top position in Riff.

Used as she was to terrestrial radio stations that banked on advertisements, the culture at Riff forced her to adapt to a new mode of functioning. Like all other WorldSpace channels, Riff is free of commercials and relies totally on subscriptions. To increase the subscriber base, Pamela and her team use various methods to understand the aspirations of music lovers across countries and frequently organise jazz tours.

Recently, she was in the city in connection with a concert, which was part of an all-India tour (`Soul of Jazz Music' by Madhav Chari). Chari is the first Indian jazz musician, whose compositions have been included in the Riff database.

With unmistakable pride, she says, "Riff gets the most number of e-mails". In the last six months, she received 100 from India. "These letters point to India's eclectic music culture".

PRINCE FREDERICK

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