RELEASED: Nov. 11, 2004

DANVILLE, KY—Kartik Seshadri, sitar virtuoso and Humana Visiting Artist at Centre, will perform a concert featuring the hypnotic, exhilarating music of India known as ragas. The free concert will take place on Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Weisiger Theatre of the College's Norton Center for the Arts.

The system of Indian classical music known as Raga Sangeet can be traced back nearly two thousand years to the ancient hymns of the Hindu temples. Unlike Western classical music, as much as 90 percent of Indian music may be improvised depending on the artistic facility and creative imagination of the performer. Indian classical music is passed on orally from teacher (guru) to student.

Each raga is characterized by its own particular rasa, or principal mood. The order of these nine sentiments (or emotions) is as follows: romantic and erotic; humorous; pathetic; anger; heroic; fearful; disgusting; amazement; and peaceful. Ragas are also closely connected to a particular time of the day or a season of the year. Every human emotion can be expressed and experienced musically via the hundreds of raga melodies and rhythms.

The sitar is the most popular stringed instrument of India. It's existed in its present form in India for nearly 700 years. Made from a gourd that's been seasoned from teakwood, the fretted instrument has six or seven main playing strings and 13 sympathetic resonating strings that are strummed.

Seshadri is internationally acclaimed as one of India's outstanding musicians and the foremost disciple of Pandit Ravi Shankar, who was a musical mentor for the Beatles at the height of their fame. Seshadri was hailed as a child prodigy by critics and prominent musicians when he began performing full-length solo recitals at the age of six. As a young genius, Seshadri had an illustrious performing career, and in 1965 he met the world-renowned maestro Ravi Shankar, who was already a profound musical influence in his life. Seshadri became a disciple of the maestro in 1974 and has been receiving talim (knowledge) from him ever since.

Seshadri's relentless touring and continued success make him one of the most sought-after soloists in major venues throughout the world. He's toured extensively in India, the United States and Canada, and his recent solo engagements have included the Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, World Music Institute, Asia Society, Vancouver Jazz Festival and Ravi Shankar's 75th birthday celebrations. Seshadri has had the added honor of accompanying Ravi Shankar in major concert halls throughout the world. His consistently brilliant performances are marked for their expressivity, rich tonal sensibility and exciting rhythmic intricacy.

Seshadri is also a distinguished composer and teacher of Indian music. His composition "Quartet for a Raga" received its world premiere in Washington, D.C. under the auspices of the Contemporary Music Forum. He also serves on the faculty of the University of California-San Diego, where he heads one of the largest programs of Indian classical music in the country.

Seshadri will be joined by Arup Chattopadhyay, recognized today as one of the outstanding tabla artists of the younger generation. The tabla is a two-piece drum in which each side of the drum is tuned differently. As a premier disciple of the world-renowned maestro Pandit Shankar Ghosh of the Farukabadh gharana (style) of tabla, Chattopadhyay has established himself both as an accompanist and soloist.

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