Acclaimed sitar virtuoso Kartik Seshadri explores subtle variations of mood and color (rasa) in four extended extrapolations of the Indian raga. In both his international solo concerts and tours with Ravi Shankar, whom he has accompanied on stage in concerts from India to Carnegie Hall in New York, Seshadri has built a wide following among Indian music afficionados who admire his rich tonal sensibility, expressiveness, and extraordinary rhythmic intricacy.

NOTES INCLUDE 40 PAGES ON THE HISTORY OF INDIAN MUSIC BY MIT MUSICOLOGIST GEORGE RUCKERT.

Kartik Seshadri, sitar Bikram Ghosh, tabla

Disc one: 1. Introduction RAGA JOG 2. Alap, Jor & Jhala 3. Gat in Rupak Tala 4. Introduction RAGA MISHRA PILOO 5. Aochar & Gat(s) in Teentala

Disc two: RAGA BILASKHANI TODI 1. Alap, Jor & Jhala 2. Gat(s) in Jhaptala & Teentala RAGA BAHAR 3. Aochar & Gat(s) in Teentala & Ektala

Kartik Seshadri is recognized worldwide as one of India’s most outstanding musicians and the foremost disciple of Ravi Shankar. He began performing full length solo recitals at the age of six and was hailed as a child prodigy by critics and prominent musicians. His initial training began with Shri Shankar Rao of All India Radio, and he became a disciple of Ravi Shankar in 1974. Seshadri performs extensively as a soloist in major venues throughout India and abroad. His concerts in India frequently include prestigious festivals, establishing him as a musician of national importance. In North America, his recent solo engagements have included the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, the Chicago Art Institute, New York’s Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center and Asia Society, the Vancouver Jazz Festival and Ravi Shankar’s 75th Birthday Celebration. He has accompanied Ravi Shankar in major concert halls throughout the world, from India, Europe and the Middle East, to Japan, Mexico and the US, including New York’s Carnegie Hall.

Seshadri is also a distinguished composer and educator of Indian music. His composition Quartet for a Raga received its orld premiere in Washington, DC under the auspices of the Contemporary Music Forum. He also teaches at the University of California, San Diego, where he heads one of the largest programs of Indian classical music in the country.

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