Ditty & Mark

It’s not every day you see a female trumpet player and a pony-tailed guitarist performing together. If you’re in Delhi, the search narrows down to one duo, Ditty & Mark. More than just a pretty face and a pony-tail though, these two are the only artists in the city – and probably further afield – who combine jazz, R&B, Greek, Balkan and Latin music into one neat package.
Aditi Veena (Ditty) and Mark Aranha started playing together only last year (though they’ve been friends for a few years) after they attended the Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music in Pondicherry, run by ace fusion guitarist Pras­anna. “It’s kind of like a gurukul, and musicians come from all over the world,” said 28-year-old Aranha. “The school is in the middle of nowhere and you live and breathe music there. We studied Greek music, Balkan music, a lot of Brazilian music, jazz, and Carnatic as well.” Veena, who is 23, has been singing professionally for quite a while (much longer than himself, admits Aranha). A member of Artists Unlimited when she was 14, Veena has since then also been involved with the Neemrana Music Foundation, singing operatic pieces, and a slew of rock bands, including The Jazz B’Stards.
Jazz forms the backbone of Ditty & Mark’s music, but they describe their music as alt jazz. “It is deeply based on jazz harmony, but our melodies very, very simple,” said Veena. “We write songs that we think we would like to listen to.” We, too, liked the tracks that are up on their SoundCloud page (www.soundcloud.com/ditty-and-mark). “Moonlighters” is a laidback Norah Jones-like acoustic ballad; “Just to Let You In” is a slow-burning R&B number with soaring vocals atop a smouldering guitar groove, and a rhythm section comprising bassist Saurav Suman and drummer Pra­noy Praveen (who often accom­pany the duo on gigs). Right at the end of the song, Veena joins the party with an uncomplicated trumpet part. “Once, when I wan­ted to learn harmony, I found it
too cumbersome,” Veena said. “That is why I picked up the trum­pet, which is a melodic instru­ment. I also thought it would help my singing.”
She has been playing the trumpet for only a year, after listening to rock bands Cake and Beirut, which feature the instrument. Perhaps, more complicated trumpet solos are in store in the future. “Phillumenated” is completely different and begins almost in free time with no discernible beat. As the song creeps forward, Veena’s trumpet enters and for a while we’re almost in spaghetti western territory. The song goes into Latin jazz mode before it changes gears once again with a brief passage of scatting and Veena’s melismatic flourishes, a nod to Mariah Carey, one of her idols.
Another one of Ditty & Mark’s heroes is jazz keyboardist Robert Glasper, who has taken the genre to an R&B and hip hop audience. It’s not a surprising influence, considering the duo’s wider opinions about jazz. “Glasper’s jazz resonates with today’s audience – right down to covering Nirvana’s ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’,” said Aranha. “As a jazz musician, I feel it is important not to alienate the audience.” With charm to spare and a set-list of upbeat originals, Ditty & Mark will surely do just the opposite at their upcoming gig.
-by Kingshuk Niyogy - Time Out Delhi