The Brooklyn Raga Massive Colors of Raga series is back, with a collaborative concert with Jay Gandhi and Abhik Mukherjee, accompanied by Tejas Tope on table. Both captivating solo performers in their own right, they have also become well known for their enthralling musical chemistry together.
Abhik Mukherjee is a shining voice of the Imdhadkhani sitar gharana and Jay Gandhi, a leading disciple of bansuri legend Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia. Their contrasting yet complementary musical styles offer a compelling composite of melodic and rhythmic approaches and their performances are often imbued with a deep and spontaneous exploration of rasa (emotional essence) and mood. Their repertoire ranges from the introspective and meditative to the joyful, romantic and ecstatic.
Abhik Mukherjee is an Indian classical sitar artist of the Etawah gharana known for his passion, charisma and spontaneity as a performer and improviser. He received his musical training from Pandit Arvind Parikh and Pandit Kashinath Mukherjee, themselves the disciples of the legendary Ustad Vilayat Khan. Abhik began his sitar training at the age of six in Kolkata, India under the guidance of his father. His first performance was at the age of nine at the Governor’s house , Kolkata.<br />
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He has performed and given workshops in India, the United States, Singapore, Taiwan, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Netherlands, Suriname, Colombia, Cuba and Argentina. <br />
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His performances for the memorial of Martin Luther King Junior at Washington DC in front of president Obama, sharing stage with Steve Wonder and Aretha Franklin received critical acclaim. He also performed with the New York philharmonic orchestra. He has directed music for a few documentaries and played and wrote songs for mainstream Hollywood movies like On Golden years, Low down and A call to spy.<br />
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He is a founding member of Brooklyn Raga Massive a popular artist collective of NYC and he is also the academic director of Chhandayan, a leading Indian music school of the east coast.
