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Varsha Seshan

Memorabilia – II

October 13, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

My grandmother was a disciple of sitar maestro Ustad Vilayat Khan, and recalled, often, how Pandit Ravi Shankar called her a ‘child prodigy’ when she performed at the Allahabad Univeristy Music Conference. Here is what the press has to say about her: Last and not the least Kumari Ratnam Mahadeo’s Sitar recital should be commended […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: sitar

My Friend the Guitarist Veda

May 15, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I remember when Veda was gifted her first guitar and all of us wanted to touch it. She was kind enough to let us touch it and we played with it, rather than playing it. Before we knew it, two years had passed, and Veda was the only girl in school who could play the […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: guitar, guitarist, performance, veda

Veda the Guitarist

March 21, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Guitar through the Ages Where does the guitar we know and love come from? Unlike the piano and violin, it’s been around in different shapes and sizes, belonging equally to wandering folk musicians and to formal classical concert halls. The guitar grew up in the courts of Europe, lived through the Rennaisance and Industrial ages, […]

Filed Under: Music

Kelemen Quartet

January 20, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

What will I remember about this concert of the Kelemen Quartet’s a few years from now? The fact that it was the first time I watched a lady in a sari play the cello ? Maybe not. The music was so beautiful that I forgot within a few moments that people are usually so conscious […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: art, classical, concert, performance, programme

A Note of Music

April 29, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Everything is made out of notes, vibrations. Many people think the universe started with a great big bang. What’s that if it isn’t a note, albeit a rather loud one? Somewhere there’s probably a note that brings the whole universe together… Goodness knows what will happen if anyone finds it… We’ll probably be blown up; […]

Filed Under: Books, Music

Our Special Chief Guest – Amjad Ali Khan

April 12, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

It was compulsory for teachers to attend the inauguration of MIT’s Vishwashanti Sangeet Academy. But my day was made when I saw Ustad Amjad Ali Khan ascend the stairs. With his characteristic humility, he acknowledged all those waiting on the sides, unlike many others who obliviously walked by. Unembarrassed by his outdated chivalry, he remained […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: art, culture, sarod, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan

The Oberon Trio

February 25, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Wow… In class III, I learned a poem about five kittens in a basket. There was one line that said ‘Each one when I pet it seems surely the best’. As The Oberon Trio played, each piece as they played it seemed surely the best. At the end of their Haydn, I could not decide […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: art, classical, performance, programme

Ustad Amjad Ali Khan

December 16, 2012 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I listened to Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan and they were beautiful. In fact, I listened to many musicians over the last few days, and enjoyed most. Yet, when I watched and listened to Ustad Amjad Ali Khan – again – I realised what makes me fall in love with him every time, year after […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: art, gandharva, sawai

Sawai Gandharva

December 13, 2012 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Sitting at the bharatiya baithak on the second day of the Sawai Gandharva festival, I realised once again that for me, the festival is as much about the grand music as about watching people. There are all sorts there. People come with yoga mats, some get floor chairs for a back-rest, some come with all their picnic […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: Ali Khan, Amaan, Ayaan, concert, festival, gandharva, sawai