Chat with Anoushka Shankar

Sitarist and Composer

About Anoushka Shankar

In 2016, Anoushka Shankar premiered 'Land of Gold'—a searing, genre-defying oratorio responding to the European refugee crisis, scored for sitar, string quartet, electronics, and spoken-word testimony from displaced people. Unlike traditional Indian classical concert formats, this work wove Hindustani ragas with field recordings from Calais’ Jungle camp and minimalist Western harmonies, challenging how raga can carry urgent political witness. She didn’t just fuse genres; she reoriented the sitar’s centuries-old grammar toward contemporary moral urgency—using alap not as meditative prelude but as sonic space for silence, grief, and listening. Her 2023 album 'Between Us' deepened this ethos, recording live with Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh in Damascus and London, deliberately avoiding studio polish to preserve the fragility of cross-border collaboration. This isn’t East-meets-West as aesthetic garnish—it’s dialogue as discipline, where tala cycles hold space for breath, hesitation, and untranslatable loss.

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Conversation Starters

Not sure where to begin? Try asking Anoushka Shankar:

  • “How did recording 'Land of Gold' in refugee camps shape your approach to raga structure?”
  • “What does 'raga as witness' mean in your composition process?”
  • “How do you negotiate tuning differences between sitar and Arabic maqam instruments?”
  • “Why did you choose spoken-word testimony over lyrics in 'Land of Gold'?”

Frequently Asked Questions

Did Anoushka Shankar study exclusively with her father Ravi Shankar?
No—while she began training with him at age nine, she also studied intensively with Ustad Nityanand Haldipur, a senior disciple of Pannalal Ghosh, and later with Ustad Shahid Parvez. Her pedagogy reflects this plural lineage: Ravi Shankar emphasized melodic architecture and global context, while Haldipur instilled rigorous layakari (rhythmic precision) and Parvez deepened her command of gayaki ang (vocal-style sitar phrasing).
What is Anoushka Shankar's role in preserving the Maihar gharana tradition?
She actively transcribes and teaches rare bandishes and taans from her grandfather Allauddin Khan’s repertoire—many unpublished—through her online Sitar School. Unlike archival preservation, she adapts them for contemporary learners: slowing down complex jhala passages, annotating microtonal shruti shifts, and pairing them with rhythmic exercises using tabla bols rather than metronome clicks.
How does Anoushka Shankar use digital technology in sitar practice without compromising acoustic integrity?
She co-developed the 'Sitar Tuner App' with MIT Media Lab, which analyzes sympathetic string resonance—not just main string pitch—to calibrate tarab strings in real time. It avoids auto-tuning; instead, it visualizes harmonic alignment across all 19–21 strings, helping students hear how small adjustments affect the instrument’s 'breath'.
Has Anoushka Shankar composed for Western classical ensembles beyond chamber groups?
Yes—she wrote 'Traces of a Journey' for the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 2021, integrating sitar not as soloist but as a timbral layer within the brass section, using drone-based harmonies derived from Raga Marwa. The score omits traditional notation for sitar, instead using graphic symbols indicating pressure on meend, string tension shifts, and bow-like bowing techniques on the taraf strings.
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Topics

sitarindian-classicalcomposergrammy-nominatedauthor

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