He reportedly collapsed at about 9pm during the “Music of Christmas” concert at Good Shepherd Assembly of God, where he had performed with three other jazz musicians.
According to an announcement on his Facebook fan page, he died at 3am today at a private hospital. He was 66.
On Saturday, he performed at the Eco Drum Jam at Plaza Shah Alam, where he held a session with young percussion enthusiasts.
A master drummer and percussionist of international standing, Pragasam was also an educator, producer and author.
He gained wide recognition in jazz and world music as an innovator of new trends and a producer of unique sounds from Asia.
Pragasam founded the flamboyantly cosmic progressive band Asiabeat in 1979, with recordings and performances that merged Malaysian, Indonesian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Western music styles.
The group amassed a large following in Malaysia and became a new voice in the music industry.
Pragasam once said his goal was to expose and hopefully enlighten the public about “the incredible culture that is largely ignored or taken for granted”.
He took his concept and group all over the world, touring on just about every continent, and making waves at some of the planet’s most renowned jazz and world music festivals.
Eventually, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship, and began teaching as artist in residence at East Carolina University.
Pragasam toured, performed and recorded with many internationally renowned artistes like Billy Cobham, Ernie Watts, Randy Bensen, Randy Crawford, John ‘Kaizan’ Neptune and Bob James.
Besides producing and organising numerous percussion festivals in the region, he travelled extensively to conduct drum and percussion workshops before writing a series of books on drum styles.
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