Sublime Ragas

A foremost protégé of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, Kartik Seshadri has very rapidly emerged as one of the world's best sitar players, bringing tremendous artistry and a unique personal expression to India's favourite string instrument. A child prodigy, he began performing full-length solos when he was just six years old and has since absorbed numerous musical influences, leading to collaborations with the likes of Philip Glass among others. This album, recorded in Canada, features the Karnatic (South Indian classical tradition) raga ‘Hamsadhwani’, a delightful pentatonic scale which has always been a firm favourite of North Indian musicians – vocalists and instrumentalists alike. Seshadri plays a fabulously lyrical version of it, very ably accompanied by Pial Hussain on tabla, whose Benares style, renowned for its rhythmic complexity, is the perfect complement to Seshadri's own hallmark of weaving the most terrifically intricate rhythmic patterns on his sitar.

The second track is the relatively rare ‘Raga Vasant Panchami’, the name of a Hindu festival celebrated in honour of goddess Saraswati (goddess of learning, art and music). In India, it heralds the arrival of spring and Seshadri's interpretation easily evokes images of mustard fields turned a heady mix of yellow and green, even in the midst of a British winter. A delightful performance and an absolute must for sitar fans.