Ragas at Dartington, near Totnes Dartington in 2023 and 2025 Parking on the estate

KalaSudha in Totnes

Near Totnes, KalaSudha has presented a 2023 trio and a full-day raga festival in Dartington's medieval Great Hall. Register for updates if the festival returns.

Totnes - City of Music

Our reach in Totnes

A growing community built through live music, trusted partnerships and shared cultural experiences.

What's next in Totnes

New concerts are being planned

Register for Totnes updates to hear first, or talk to us about bringing a KalaSudha concert to your venue.

About KalaSudha in Totnes

KalaSudha's Totnes concerts take place at Dartington Trust Hall, the medieval Great Hall of a 14th-century estate in South Devon. Dartington's founders, Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst, drew on the ideas of Rabindranath Tagore, who is said to have influenced Leonard's choice of the estate. We first came on 27 August 2023 with the Trinity Trio: Pandit Debasis Chakroborty on Indian slide guitar, Deepak Shah on piano and Durjay Bhaumik on tabla.

On 27 September 2025 we returned for the Dartington Ragas Festival, a full day of sets “linked like beads on a single thread”. Jonathan Mayer's sitar met Pandit Debasis Chakroborty's slide guitar with Ustad Akram Khan on tabla, and pianist Deepak Shah played with a local sitar player. The day ended with a tabla duet with Ustad Akram Khan. Newcomers could wander in and out without keeping track of the time.

Register for updates to hear first if the Dartington Ragas Festival returns. Pandit Debasis Chakroborty played our Dartington concerts in 2023 and 2025, and you can study with him in the online course Indian Slide Guitar with Debasis Chakroborty.

Why Totnes

What sets KalaSudha apart in Totnes

  • Dartington in 2023 and 2025

    Pandit Debasis Chakroborty played KalaSudha's Dartington concerts in both 2023 and 2025.

  • Parking on the estate

    Pay for on-site parking by machine or the RingGo app, near the Hall or at The Cider Press Centre.

  • Ravi Shankar at Dartington

    Ravi Shankar is among the Indian artists who have visited and performed on the estate.

  • Indian music at the college

    Imrat Khan and Sharda Sahai led the study of Indian music at the former Dartington College of Arts.

Our venue reach in Totnes

The halls and cultural spaces where KalaSudha has brought artists and audiences together—and where our network continues to grow.

Milestones

Our Totnes story

The performances, partnerships and shared moments that continue to shape our work in the city.

  1. Concerts
    Dartington-Trust-Hall-27-Sep-2025

    2 concerts presented

    KalaSudha has built a stage for Indian classical music in Totnes with 1 venue partner.

  2. Artists
    Pandit Debasis Chakroborty playing Indian slide guitar

    7 artists featured

    Musicians from different lineages have met our Totnes audience through performances and conversations.

Past KalaSudha concerts in Totnes

Explore the performances, artists and venue partnerships that have grown our community across the city.

View all past concerts

FAQs about Totnes

Where can I hear live Indian classical music near Totnes in Devon, and has KalaSudha held concerts at Dartington?

KalaSudha has presented Indian classical music near Totnes at Dartington Trust Hall, on the Dartington estate (TQ9 6EL): an evening concert in August 2023, and the full-day Dartington Ragas Festival in September 2025, with Kathak dance, dhrupad singing, sitar, Indian slide guitar, piano, sarangi and tabla. Festival artists included Pandit Jonathan Mayer on sitar, Pandit Debasis Chakroborty on Indian slide guitar, the raga pianist Deepak Shah and Ustad Akram Khan on tabla.

KalaSudha is also launching a streaming player on its own platform soon, with live concerts and edited recordings of past concerts in up to 4K. To hear about new Totnes dates, press Register for updates on the KalaSudha Totnes page.

How do I find out about upcoming KalaSudha Indian classical music concerts in Totnes and Dartington?

Press Register for updates on the KalaSudha Totnes page to hear when KalaSudha sets a new Totnes or Dartington date. KalaSudha lists each new Totnes concert on that page with its booking link.

KalaSudha's Totnes concerts have taken place at Dartington Trust Hall, including the full-day Dartington Ragas Festival in September 2025.

Can I learn Indian classical music with KalaSudha in or near Totnes, online and in person?

Yes. KalaSudha's online academy offers classes in every discipline of Indian classical music, and keeps adding specialised courses and teachers. The courses are hybrid. When enough learners in and around Totnes sign up, KalaSudha brings physical workshops and summer camps to Totnes, so you can learn online and in person.

For workshop levels, see what level KalaSudha workshops suit, and to catch new dates, see how to hear about new KalaSudha concerts in Totnes and Dartington.

I have never been to an Indian classical concert. What kind of music and musicians will I hear at a KalaSudha concert in Totnes?

A raga performance opens with the alap, a slow section with no pulse. In instrumental music the jor then brings in a steady pulse, and when the tabla enters with the composition, the rhythm takes hold. KalaSudha concerts run in two halves with a short interval, about 2 to 2½ hours. KalaSudha's Dartington Ragas Festival, near Totnes, brought the sitar player Pandit Jonathan Mayer, the raga pianist Deepak Shah and the tabla player Ustad Akram Khan. See the first-time listener guide and concerts near Totnes.

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