Morning Ragas performed by
Indradeep Ghosh (violin)
Sudhakar Vaidyanathan (tabla)

Where the Bow Meets the Soul – A rare concert Morning Ragas performed by virtuoso North Indian violinist Indradeep Ghosh with Sudhakar Vaidyanathan on tabla.

Join us for a unique opportunity to hear an intimate recital of Hindustani morning ragas in the Dhrupad [devotional vocal music] Style, Baaj, from the Maihar tradition. This is the tradition that gave us such revered artists as maestros Ustad Allaudin Khan, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Pandit Ravi Shankar, and Pandit Nikhil Banerjee.

Indradeep Ghosh has performed and been celebrated worldwide. He is one of only a few musicians who play Hindustani (North Indian) classical music on the violin. Indradeep performs on a unique custom five-string violin/viola with eight sympathetic/resonating strings (modeled after other traditional Indian instruments like the sitar and the Norwegian Hardanger fiddle), which gives a richer tone and reverberant effect.

This concert offers the rare opportunity to hear morning ragas at the appropriate time of day and in an intimate setting that replicates the long tradition of baithak (sitting) where ragas were traditionally performed in private at the home of a patron or in the royal court to an audience passionate about the music. In recent years, particularly since the rise in global popularity of Indian music in the 1970s, many performers have shifted the focus of the music from a leisurely exposition of melodic aesthetics to more rhythm-heavy performances aimed at general audiences. With this recital, Indradeep will highlight the more traditional melodic, improvisational, and meditative aesthetics that are at the spiritual core of the music.

The program offers both a full raga performance (beginning with an extended alap or non-rhythmic exposition) and concludes with several shorter semi-classical forms that typically draw on traditional folk melodies from diverse rural Indian traditions. We hope to introduce this centuries-old tradition to new listeners and to delight those already familiar with it. Of course, chai will be served along with Indian snacks and sweets.

Biographies

Indradeep Ghosh has performed throughout the world at venues including the 10th Asia Festival in Barcelona, SXSW music festival at Austin, USA, Learn Quest Music Festival, Boston, USA, Tansen-Tyagaraja Music and Dance Festival, Rajahmundry, India Festival Du Bout Du Monde, France, the YOMAD Festival in Croatia, Yoga-Vidya Music Festival in Germany, to name a few. He has performed throughout Europe, including Germany, France, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain, Denmark, Croatia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and has toured all over the USA.

He has collaborated with several Western musicians such as Grammy-winning Kora player Mama Dou Diabate, world-famous rock band drummer Steve Smith, Jazz Organ Monster Tony Monaco, and versatile Flutist Pedro Eustache, to name a few.

He has to his credit many Classical and Fusion Music albums. He is the only Indian Violinist to release the first-ever commercial VIOLA (Bass Violin) album titled “Tribute to Miyan Tansen on Viola”. He has also contributed to the album, Melodic Intersect: One Vision, which won the Akademia Music Award in January 2016 from Los Angeles.

He has also composed new ragas such as Ganapati, Indradhanush, and Hamsavahini, which have gained enormous appreciation and popularity from both Indian and global listeners.

Sudhakar Vaidyanathan began his training in tabla under Shri Satish Tare at the age of 8. He has been continuing his training with Padma Shri Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri for the past 10+ years. He is a well established accompanist and soloist in the Bay Area. He has had the fortune of performing at many prestigious venues and festivals such as Davies Symphony Hall (San Francisco), BRM Ragas Live Festival, Festival of Tabla, and is a regular performer at the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, CA and across the Bay Area. He has also collaborated closely with the Chitresh Das Institute, playing multiple shows with their dance company across America

Location: Dresher Ensemble Studio, 2201 Poplar Street Oakland, CA United States