August 2017: A Contemporary Look at Ordo Virtutum
"According to Deepak, improvisation brings the performer and listener to the very essence of being through sound. And while entertainment is a part of the process, the ultimate goal of any musical performance is to remind the performer and listener of the essence within themselves. As a performer, Deepak believes his role is to remind listeners of their own spiritual essence."
Listen to Deepak Ram's Interview on NPR's Morning Edition, December 12, 2012 here
“Ram is certainly an accomplished player, displaying a technical mastery reminiscent of his famous teacher’s….Ram’s playing is mysterious and haunting. Ram proves on this recording (Prasad) that he’s likely to become a central figure in a new generation of Indian musicians.”
- Gerry Farrell, Songlines, U.K., November & December, 2002
“His work was impressive. He made emotional and technical magic come out of that close-to-a-yard-long wooden instrument. He proved that he possesses the lungs, the lips, and the fingers to control his ungainly flute. And he conveyed feeling ever so effectively as each raga moved from melismatic, heart-of-space exhortation to virtuoso exhibitionism, from carried-on-a-breeze atmospherics to rip-snorting pyrotechnics.”
- Peter Jacobi, Herald-Times Reviewer, Bloomington, IN, 2001
“... Phenomenal flute playing, accomplished performer and composer"
- London Guardian, 1998
"... This is an artist in the real sense of the word..."
- Blues and Soul, London, 1998
Deepak is a master of the bansuri flute, a haunting traditional Indian instrument that he mixes masterfully with acoustic jazz improvisation. Music for the soul, make no mistake.
- Wax Magazine, 1999
“He does not play his instrument, he is his instrument. It seems as though the breath of a melody was passing through the air which he simply reached up and caught in his flute.”
- Daily News, Durban, 1991
“He is able to make this deceptively simple looking instrument do astonishing things. At first recitative, with impeccable phrasing, it is soon clear that he is equally at home with turns and runs. “
- Natal Witness, Pietermaritzburg, 1990
“He provides a round even tone, with a purity which commands a gamut of dynamics. No speed is too fast if the music demands it, and any player would envy his flutter-tonguing.”
- Grocotts Mail, Grahamstown, 1989
“South African composer Deepak Ram’s score is rich and haunting innovative without straying too far from its ancient roots.”
- Cape Times, 1987