I recently read Steve Martin’s autobiography : Born Standing Up Part philosophical treatise, part how-to guide, it’s a deep dive into how a performance is created-an intersection of art and science, intense honesty and brutal self examination. He delivers an elegant and sophisticated analysis of his journey from Disneyland to sold out shows and hit movies with not a single gripe against anyone, solely focusing … Continue reading An inspiring book for all performance artists

I’ve been practicing Malkauns a bit lately – in preparation for an upcoming concert. Malkauns is a grand raga but very simple in its construction – S g M d n S (lowercase=komal swaras) Technically, it’s classified as a member of Bhairavi, however, it is an ancient raga, and the classification system is of recent origin in Hindustani music. In Carnatic music, there is a … Continue reading The Magnificence of Malkauns

Raga Dhani is a rather uncommon afternoon raga and is not very common on the sarod, although it’s structure lends itself very well to the instrument. Some experts believe it can be played any time of the day and night. I tend to favour the afternoon time cycle. Dhani is an amalgam of Malkauns and Bhimpalasi – if not careful, the identity of the raga … Continue reading Raga Dhani – An afternoon introspection