US Air Force Band of Pacific collaborates with world-renowned Indian percussionist Giridhar Udupa

US Air Force Band of Pacific collaborates with Ghatam Giridhar

Acclaimed Indian percussion artist Giridhar Udupa, who plays the ghatam and the Hawaii-based United States Air Force Band of the Pacific, have jointly released a music video. The collaboration was inspired by the band’s commitment to support Aero India 2021, and reinforces the U.S.-India Major Defense Partnership and people-to-people ties between our countries.

The original song “Open Clusters” was composed by Staff Sergeant Luis Rosa, a saxophone instrumentalist with the U.S. Air Force Band of the Pacific, and is a musical fusion of two masters of Indian and Puerto Rican culture and rhythm. The Band’s original plan included a live performance with Indian master-percussionist Ghatam Giridhar Udupa. But these plans were scuttled due to the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. In this video, Udupa performs traditional Indian rhythms on the “Ghatam”, one of India’s most ancient percussion instrument. Talking about the long-distance collaboration, the Indian percussion artist Giridhar Udupa said, “I am very excited about the newly composed track with incredible musicians from the U.S. Air Force Band. The composition perfectly fits into the world music scene.”

The United States Air Force Band of the Pacific is a squadron of professional U.S. Air Force musicians that performs in diverse musical configurations and fulfills community relations and military functions throughout the Western Pacific region.