Sunken Cages is the solo-project of drummer/electronic music producer Ravish Momin. Momin studied with US Jazz master-drummer Andrew Cyrille.  He has worked as a sideman with a wide array of musicians including pop star Shakira and US Jazz legend Kalaparush Maurice McIntyre (AACM/Chicago.)  In the past, he also led ‘Turning Jewels Into Water’ (with Haitian electronic music pioneer Val Jeanty) and Tarana, a global-Jazz trio, on international and domestic stages. 

His current projects include duos with dragonchild (DA Mekonnen of Debo Band) and Faraway Ghost (Iranian singer/songwriter Kamyar Arsani.) As Sunken Cages, Momin plays electronic drums. While rooted in Indian and Black Music traditions, he is also influenced by the street sounds of underground dance music from Sao Paolo to Durban to Mumbai. He is signed to OnTheCorner Records (UK) and Akuphone Records (France.)

He has done remixes for Depeche Mode, global electronic music producers Batida (Portugal), Babani Sound System (Mauritius) and Guedra Guedra (Morocco).

His recent performance highlights include the Words/Beat/ Life Festival (Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage (US)), Big Ears Festival (US), LeGuessWho? Festival (NL), Positive Futures Festival (AT),  Lincoln Center Outdoors Festival (NYC, US), Slingshot Festival (US) and Festival Congedi (IT). He is also the recipient of grants from New Music USA, The Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, NYC Arts In Education Roundtable, Arts International, Meet The Composer and NYSCA (New York State Council of the Arts)

Momin is known for his innovative approach to live performance that integrates electronic drumming with Ableton-based sound design.  Here’s a general overview of how he uses Ableton:

1. **Triggering Samples**: Momin triggers samples from his drum pads which are mapped to multiple drum-racks. These include kits made from ancient South Indian drums as well as ones sampled from his vast arsenal of global percussion.

2. **Looping and Layering**: Live’s looping capabilities allow Momin to layer different sounds and loops in real-time. He can create complex rhythmic patterns by combining loopers from multiple grouped tracks.

3. **Effects Processing**: Momin uses reverb, delay, distortion, granulators, phasers and other effects to manipulate the sounds of his electronic drums before and/or after creating loops to generate unique sounding patterns.

4. **Live Performance and Improvisation**: Live is designed for live performance and improvisation, which makes it an ideal tool for an electronic drummer like Momin who started out playing acoustic drums. He can use Ableton’s session view to organize his sounds into clips and scenes, allowing him to trigger non-linear arrangements of his performance on the fly.

5. **MIDI Controllers**: Momin can use MIDI controllers to trigger clips, control effects parameters, and manipulate other aspects of his performance in Ableton Live. This gives him more flexibility and control over his live electronic drumming setup.

MASTERCLASS & WORKSHOP

1. Objective #1: Conduct educational events with the students (including workshops and masterclasses and lectures).

• Masterclass

  • Momin will demonstrate how his approach sits at the intersection of music technology, improvisation and global rhythms. This includes introducing and demonstrating his musical hardware (electronic drum pads, triggers, MIDI controllers, etc) and software (Ableton Live).

• Workshop

Momin will assign skill-appropriate Ableton-based projects during the session(s)