A Hundred Strings in London: gezupft und angeschlagen

A Hundred Strings is KalaSudha's tour of sitar, santoor and tabla. The name comes from the santoor, the hundred-stringed instrument of Kashmir.

The tour brings the sitar player Adnan Khan and the santoor player Vinay Desai together with the tabla player Ustad Akram Khan. In Manchester, Ustad Shahbaz Hussain also plays tabla. The sitar is plucked and slides between notes; the santoor is struck and cannot slide, so it moves in runs.

The tour plays Oxford, Manchester, Bournemouth and London.

St Saviour's, Pimlico is on St George's Square, Pimlico, London SW1V 3QW. Pimlico on the Victoria line is the closest Underground station, and Victoria is under a ten-minute walk.

Buses 24, 360 and C10 stop outside the church, and routes 2, 36 and 185 run along Vauxhall Bridge Road. Cycle hire stands are outside the church, and Pimlico station has racks.

By car, there is street parking around St George's Square. Westminster controlled parking zones apply, so check the signs on the day for evening restrictions and charges. For step-free access, contact the parish office on 020 7834 9520 or [email protected] before you book.

St Saviour's, Pimlico has not published its access details. If you need step-free access, a wheelchair space or help with seating, contact the parish office on 020 7834 9520 or [email protected] before you book. KalaSudha will then confirm arrangements for the evening.

For access at any KalaSudha concert, see who to talk to about access needs.

You can hear Hindustani (North Indian) classical music live in London at London Ragas, KalaSudha's concert series in London. Its evenings are baithaks: the audience sits close to the musicians. London Ragas can take place at different venues across London, and KalaSudha plans to add more baithaks in other parts of London. KalaSudha is based in London, so every concert tour it organises also plays London once.

See how to book tickets for a London concert and how to get to the venues.

Adnan Khan is a Grammy-nominated sitar player from Delhi who works in the gayaki ang, the approach that shapes the instrument after the singing voice. He took his first lessons from his maternal grandfather, the late Zafar Ahmed Khan, and trains with his father, the sitar player Saeed Khan. His uncle, the khayal singer Mashkoor Ali Khan, taught him the gayaki ang at the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in Kolkata. Melody leads in his playing, and a raga's notes keep their shape through his fastest runs.

Vinay Desai plays the santoor, the hundred-stringed instrument of Kashmir, struck with two light curved mallets. He studied with Shivkumar Sharma, who received the Padma Vibhushan, through Sharma's final years. A struck string cannot bend, so his expression comes from where the strokes fall and how they are spaced. His concerts open slow, with no beat at all, until the raga has a shape. Then the tabla comes in, and the close is fast.

The sitar is plucked and slides between notes. The santoor is struck and cannot slide, so it moves in runs and repeated strokes.

The sitar is a long-necked lute with a gourd body, movable curved frets and sympathetic strings beneath the playing strings. The santoor is the hundred-stringed instrument of Kashmir: a flat wooden box strung with metal strings, struck with a pair of light wooden mallets.

On the sitar you hear a phrase held and bent, the way a singer does. On the santoor each note rings on after the hand has moved. See what is a sitar and what is a santoor.

The Ajrara gharana, also spelt Ajrada, is a school of tabla that arose in the late 18th or early 19th century in the village of Ajrara, in Meerut district. Most accounts trace it to two brothers, Kallu Khan and Miru Khan, who learnt in Delhi, making it an offshoot of the Delhi gharana. Its players add the ring finger to the Delhi technique. It is best known for qaidas, themes with set variations, in aad laya, three strokes to every two beats. Ustad Akram Khan plays in the gharana today.

When you book on kalasudha.com, your KalaSudha confirmation email carries your ticket. Show it on your phone at the door, or bring a printout if you prefer paper.

If the email has not arrived, check your spam folder first. If it is still missing, write to [email protected] and we will send your ticket again.

Can no longer come? See refunds. Event moved or cancelled? See cancellations and date changes. Planning the night? See when to arrive.

Arrive at the door time shown on the KalaSudha event page. Doors open before the music starts, so you can find a seat and settle before the first note. All times are UK local time.

When the programme opens with a raga, the first section is the alap, the slow, free-tempo opening of the raga. Arriving after the start time means walking in during it.

For seating, see Is seating allocated? If this is your first Indian classical concert, read what to expect as a newcomer.