PORT ANGELES — Joseph Albright’s musical journey took him around the world and back home to Port Angeles.
Albright, 26, has been back and forth between the United States and India seven times, training under many musicians, and is now a disciple of tabla maestro Pandit Anindo Chatterjee of Calcutta.
He will put his skills on display this weekend in both Port Townsend and Port Angeles.
Albright said he loves the opportunities the tabla — a drum-like instrument used to accompany other instruments — has opened up for him.
“The great thing is that when these amazing musicians are flown all the way over to the states, and they need a tabla player, a lot of the time they don’t want to have to fly one over too but I’m right here already so I can do it,” he said.
“This is a great instrument.”
Albright has been enchanted with Indian music since he was a small child.
“My dad was always listening to it,” Albright said.
“So that is how I first got into it.”
Although his father, Matt, died a few years ago, Albright said the gift of music remains with him.
He said that the tone of Indian music, along with the complexity, drew him in.
“I think it is kind of like jazz in America, but there is a lot less improvisation and more rules to it,” he said.
“It is very structured, but it flows amazingly well.”
When Albright turned 15, he asked his parents if he could forgo high school and go to India to study music.
“At that point, I played guitar and was experimenting with some of the other instruments,” Albright — who took the nickname Ravi during his trips to India — said.
“Then someone suggested I try out the tabla, and I started to really train on it.”
Now he has built up to having four students of his own on the North Olympic Peninsula.
“I’m amazed at how dedicated my students are,” he said.
“They are all very devout.”
One day, he plans to finish high school, but Albright has been focusing on his music for the past 11 years.
He will perform with Deepak Ram on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Peninsula College in the Little Theater, 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd, Port Angeles.
Deepak Ram is a 35-year veteran of the classical bansuri flute and has toured and performed all over the world, including the U.S., South Africa, United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Austria, Germany, Lebanon, Turkey, India and Holland.
On Sunday, Albright will perform at the Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Ave., Port Townsend, at 7 p.m.
Tickets are $12 at the door for each performance, Albright said.
Albright and his wife, Priya, are staying with his mother, Ellen Adams, for a few months before moving to the Seattle area.
He said that he aspires to combine his love of teaching the instrument with his love of playing it.
“I don’t really know how it will all shake out in the end,” he said.
“But I know that Seattle has a strong base for the Indian culture, so I think I’ll be able to find great opportunities there.”
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
