Rhythms of India: KalaSudha's Cultural Odyssey (#1)
- #London
- #In-Person
- MAY 6, 2023
- Saturday
- 6:30 PM
- 2 hours
- Britannia Village Hall
- London, United Kingdom
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Event Summary
Performing Artists
Performing Artists
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Debasis Chakroborty
Event Details
Pandit Debasis Chakroborty plays Indian slide guitar in London on Saturday 6 May 2023, at Britannia Village Hall in the Royal Docks, from 6.30pm. It is the first concert in the series Rhythms of India: KalaSudha's Cultural Odyssey, and it puts Indian classical ragas on a modern stage. He plays with tabla accompaniment.
Pandit Debasis Chakroborty's instrument is the slide lap guitar, held flat on the lap. He belongs to the Senia-Maihar Gharana, a school of playing passed from teacher to student, and studied under Brij Bhushan Kabra. His playing blends the gharana's gayaki ang, the singing style, with its tantrakari ang, the instrumental style.
Prasar Bharati, India's public broadcaster, lists him as an A-grade artist in both Hindustani classical and light music. His slide lap guitar playing has won awards and international acclaim.
The hall is at 65 Evelyn Road, Royal Docks, London E16 1TU. Book your seats on this page.
Venue information
Britannia Village Hall
65 Evelyn Road, Royal Docks, London, E16 1TU
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I hear live Indian classical music in London, and which venues does KalaSudha use?
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.
Who is the Indian slide guitarist Pandit Debasis Chakroborty, the senior-most disciple of Pandit Brij Bhushan Kabra?
Pandit Debasis Chakroborty is a Hindustani slide guitarist and the senior-most disciple of Pandit Brij Bhushan Kabra, and his playing reflects Kabra's style. His name is also written Debasis Chakraborty. He plays in the Senia-Maihar gharana and has taught since 1992.
He has been part of the Department of Performing Arts at Mangalayatan University since its inception, and returns to universities in Australia and the USA as a conductor-performer and artist-in-residence. He helped carry out a joint music research project between Mangalayatan University and Monash University, and has published 10 research papers.
What is an Indian slide guitar, how is it played, and where can I learn it?
The Indian slide guitar is a guitar laid flat across the lap and stopped with a steel bar instead of fingers on frets. It is an instrument of Hindustani classical music, the classical music of North India. Sympathetic strings ring underneath the melody unstruck, and the player plucks extra drone (chikari) strings.
The bar never leaves the string, so one note travels into the next without a break. For its history and players, see the Indian slide guitar page. You can learn it with KalaSudha in the online academy.
What is the Senia-Maihar gharana, who founded it, and which KalaSudha artist plays in it?
The Senia-Maihar gharana is the sarod lineage that Allauddin Khan founded at Maihar, a former princely state, in the early 20th century. Most sources treat it and the Maihar gharana as one school spanning several instruments. "Senia" names the Tansen line, which Allauddin Khan joined as a disciple of Wazir Khan of Rampur. He brought a dhrupad approach to the sarod, sitar, violin and bansuri. Among KalaSudha's artists, Pandit Debasis Chakroborty plays in the gharana.
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