Indian subcontinent abounds in a variety of musical instruments, and a considerable specialisation is displayed in instrumental usage, both in north and south Indian art music. Instruments present music solo, provide melodic or rhythmic accompaniment, or produce drones.
This two-day festival will feature instruments from different periods – ancient (flute), post-medieval (sarangi), modern (sitar & tabla) and cotemporary (mohan vina) presenting Hindustani and Carnatic music.
6th March
Dhruba Ghosh (Sarangi) with Aneesh Pradhan (Tabla)
Vishwamohan Bhatt (Mohan Vina) with Ramkumar Mishra (Tabla)
Dhruba Ghosh is among the few practitioners of sarangi in India who has explored the instrument’s range of expressiveness and introduced innovation within the traditional idiom. Dhruba’s musical lineage comes from his father Nikhil Ghosh, the renowned sarangi wizard Sagiruddin Khan, veteran vocalist-composer Dinkar Kaikini and sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan. As a soloist, he has adapted the entire range of free time exposition (alaap, jod, jhala) to the sarangi, exploiting to the fullest the instrument’s potential. He has performed at various music venues and festivals in India and has been featured at the prestigious international music festivals abroad.
The creator of the mohan vina and winner of a Grammy Award, Vishwamohan Bhatt is the foremost disciple of Ravi Shankar. He attracted international attention by his successful Indianisation of the western Hawaiian guitar, assimilating to perfection sitar, sarod and veena techniques. Bhatt's style includes a natural ability to play the tantrakari ang, incorporating the gayaki ang. He has performed widely in Europe, the Middle East and the US.
