Autorickshaw is a world music ensemble that embodies the essence of new forms of expression that are emerging on the Canadian music landscape. Their integration of South Asian tradition with jazz and other popular music forms represents an innovative and refreshing new standard. The ensemble's repertoire includes funky, contemporary arrangements of south Indian classical compositions; Bollywood tinged jazz standards, and fiery Indo-jazz originals. Produced by artistic directors Suba Sankaran and Ed Hanley, 'Four Higher' is a perfect collision of these styles.

Nominated for a JUNO Award for World Music Album of the Year in 2005 for their album Four Higher, and winner of the 2005 Canadian Independent Music Award for World Music Artist of the Year, the band has been making waves across Canada and the world. Autorickshaw thrives on the diverse musical backgrounds of its members-vocalist and pianist Suba Sankaran, tabla player Ed Hanley, bassist Rich Brown, and percussionist Debashis Sinha.

SUBA SANKARAN

Toronto based vocalist, pianist and percussionist Suba Sankaran's varied musical career began at an early age studying South Indian vocal music and percussion with her father, master drummer Trichy Sankaran. She graduated from York University in 1997, where she studied jazz with Carol Welsman, Lisa Martinelli, Bob Mover, Don Thompson, Barry Elmes and Al Henderson, and completed her Master of Arts degree in 2002.

She has studied South Indian classical vocal music with Sankari Krishnan, T. Vishwanathan, K. Subramaniam and N. Ramani, percussion with Glen Velez, Sal Ferreras and Russell Hartenberger and piano with Casey Sokol and Francine Kay.

Suba regularly performs with world music ensemble Trichy's Trio, Renaissance vocal music with Voyces Past, jazz with the FreePlay Duo, and sings a cappella 80's hits with Retrocity.

Suba has appeared on numerous recordings, and is sought after as a freelance vocalist for jazz, R'n'B, gospel, western classical, south Asian, and world music projects. She has directed contemporary jazz choirs at York University, the Royal Conservatory of Music and Earl Haig Secondary School. As well as conducting workshops, she is in demand as a private teacher and as an arranger for various choirs in Canada.

ED HANLEY

Ed Hanley has studied tabla with Ritesh Das, Swapan Chaudhuri and Anindo Chatterjee, nattuvangam with Hari Krishnan, kanjira and solkattu with Trichy Sankaran, and Carnatic rhythm theory and mrdangam repertoire with Karaikudi Mani over his 14-year career.

He has performed in a variety of world, jazz and classical settings with artists including Parmela Attariwala, The Tea Party, James Campbell, George Koller, Persian ensemble Mehrvarzan, Rick Lazar, Alan Hetherington, Maryem Tollar, Ray Montford, Donald Quan, Ramesh Misra, Gary Craig, The Toronto Tabla Ensemble, The Penderecki Quartet and Jane Bunnett and the Spirits of Havana.

His work can be heard on recordings including those by the Toronto Tabla Ensemble, Rheas Obsession, Ray Montford, and The Skanksters, as well as on the soundtracks for the films Such A Long Journey and Garden of Stone. Ed's association with dance is extensive: He has composed music for Canboulay Dance Theatre, Ballet Jorgen, Arte Flamenco, Jenn Goodwin, Hari Krishnan, Roberto Campanella, Mitch Kirsch, Nova Bhattacharya, Natasha Bakht and the fFIDA's Composer's Choice series as well as the original score for the dancefilm Freestyle.

DEBASHIS SINHA

Debashis Sinha is a Toronto based percussionist who specializes in the drums of the Arab world, Greece, and Turkey. His ability to uncover the rhythmic threads in a wide variety of musical styles has earned him a place in the forefront of Canada's new generation of traditional musicians. His explorations and studies in technique and rhythm have enabled him to forge a distinct percussive style that makes him in demand with ensembles playing everything from Arabic to Jazz to Yiddish new music, appearing with a veritable "who's who" of Canadian world music experimenters. A founding member of noted world music ensemble Maza Mezé, Debashis has performed with them and other ensembles on stages across Canada, the US and even as far afield as Cairo.

He has studied south Indian rhythmic theory with Trichy Sankaran, Arabic tambourine and doum-beck at the Helwan University Faculty of Music in Cairo, and has traveled to the US to take lessons from tombak master Pejman Hadadi and frame drum maestro Glen Velez.

RICH BROWN

Rich Brown Electric bassist Rich Brown started his professional career in his home of Toronto back in 1992. Since then, Brown has become well known for his lyricism and strong melodic sensibility on the electric bass. He is a past member of the band Dapp Theory, and has performed and recorded with some of the most talented musicians in Canada and around the world including JUNO Award winning artists such as Metalwood, Glenn Lewis, Carol Welsman, Molly Johnson, and Bruce Cockburn. Brown has also performed with international artists such as Trinidad's Clive Zanda, Gambian kora master Yan Koba Saho, steel pannist Andy Narrell, former Ani DiFranco drummer Andy Stochansky and Steve Coleman & Five Elements. He was a feature artist in residence at the AKKU school of performance in Steyr, Austria and a featured clinician at the Bruckner Conservatory in Linz.

Rich Brown has appeared on over 40 recordings ranging from Jazz to RnB to traditional South Asian, far East Asian, and Arabic music. He is currently at work on a new solo project called rinsethealgorithm and can also be seen in a feature interview with the online magazine activebass.com