MUMBAI: Founded by Arijit Chakraborty, a photographer and sound engineer, the Kolkata-based Amuze Records is all set for a live setting The Foxtrot Project V2 Tour in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Kolkata. Featuring Kolkata-based Arunava Chatterjee aka Shonai, The Bodhisattwa Trio, Delhi jazz band Syncopation, Kolkata-based Rohan Ganguli Quartet and the Neel Sarkar Project, the agenda of building this compilation is to acquire the contemporary and experimental sound of the Jazz music that is being created in India these days. The first edition of The Foxtrot Project was held in April 2015 and the album was released in December 2015.

People who are not aware of the musicians, Shonai aka Arunava Chatterjee, is the faculty head of Piano in Calcutta School of Music and an outstanding piano player from this part of the country. The Bodhisattwa Trio is a renowned avant-garde Jazz-Rock trio based in Kolkata. They released their last album 'Heart Of Darkness' by Amuze Records in 2016 and have been endorsing brands like Fender, Sonor, Remo among others. Their last album was critically acclaimed and featured in top 10 best releases from India in 2016 by international magazine Rolling Stone India.

The Neel Sarkar Project’s frontman, Neel Sarkar is a classically trained Indian music composer and instrumentalist. The band has been featured by French cultural centre 'Alliance du Francais' in India for their last album and tour project Zikr which was released by Amuze Records.

Rohan Ganguli Quartet comprises Rohan Ganguli (guitar/composer), Sounak Roy (drums), and Arunava Sonai Chatterjee (keyboard). Rohan, who has been a student of music for nearly two decades under the tutelage of ace musician Amyt Datta is also an endorsee of Fender and Ernie Ball and known for his roots to a diverse background of music. On the other hand, Sounak Roy, who plays the drums, has been nurturing his talent for many years by playing with a host of bands and dabbling in different styles of music. Last but not the least, another member Arunava Sonai Chatterjee is a contemporary jazz pianist/educator.

Syncopation, the Delhi-based Funk/Jazz/Blues trio featuring guitarist/composer Rishie Sachdeva, drummer Nikhil Vasudevan and bassist Jayant Manchanda is a significantly famous band for their style of music in and outside India.

The Jazz compilation, ‘The Foxtrot Project’ is a collective of various contemporary Jazz musicians. All the music of the compilation is original. Compositions/improvisations of each of the artists are solely created for this set. Also, the entire album was recorded live, either during a performance or at some secluded place which had been turned into a make-shift studio!

Radioandmusic.com spoke to Rohan Ganguly from Rohan Ganguli Quartet on contemporary jazz, who said it is “very hard to describe...Jazz is more a frame of mind than something that can be expressed in words.”

“In that sense, it’s a feeling and a way of life that is constantly growing and changing just like we do. We have to nourish and nurture it constantly. It has a strong tradition and the tradition itself encourages change and improvisation and capturing moments spontaneously. The modern guys have taken newer paths which are superb...like Brian Blade or Kurt Rosenwinkel or Esbjorn Svennson or Joshua Redman. It's more a way of thinking and a way of life than just music. This is indeed a great initiative by him (Arijit Chakraborty),” added Rohan.

Presented by Amuze Records, in association with antiSOCIAL The Foxtrot Project V2 album release gig will take place Mumbai on 1 June and 4 June at antiSOCIAL.