German radio WDR3 portrays phenomenal ragasinger Kaushiki Desikan Chakrabarty

On tuesday 23 November 2010 at 23.05 PM German public radiostation WDR3 portrays phenomenal 30-year old (and my favourite) ragasinger Kaushiki Desikan Chakrabarty from Calcutta.


Kaushiki in 2010

Earlier, on 10 November 2010 WDR3 devoted a radio evening on Kaushiki, with a live broadcast of her concert in Bielefeld, a very beautiful performance that was described by renowned ragaspecialist Jan Reichow as “Das außergewöhnlichste, ergreifendste, intelligenteste, fröhlichste, innovativste Konzert Europas”. He’s not exaggerating. Kaushiki has it all and when you hear her live on stage her voice is able to touch your heart and soul deeper than you ever could have imagined… I’m saying this with great conviction as I’m speaking from my own wonderful experiences with hearing Kaushiki live in concert (at the Darbar Festival in 2008 in Leicester, and in 2007 in the Tropentheater in Amsterdam).

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Kaushik performing in London in 2005, after she received the BBC3 World Music Award

WDR3 radio provides the following information for the radiobroadcast on 23 November 2010: Kaushiki Desikan Chakraborty gehört zu den großen Talenten der jungen Generation. Im Gegensatz zu früher dürfen Nachwuchskünstler heute schon viel früher ihr Können öffentlich zeigen. Kaushiki ist erst 30 Jahre alt und schon eine anerkannte Sängerin auf den großen Bühnen Indiens. Sie hat eine betörende Stimme und ein für ihr Alter ungewöhnliches technisches Vermögen. Die Pflege der alten Tradition ist ihr erklärtes Ziel. In diesem Sinne ist sie, obwohl jung, eine wertkonservative Künstlerin – mehr noch: sie trägt mit ihrer Haltung zum Überleben des klassischen indischen Geangs bei. Anlässlich ihres Bielefelder WDR-3-Konzerts vor knapp zwei Wochen erzählte Kaushiki unserer Autorin Clair Lüdenbach von ihrer Kunst und aus ihrem Leben.

If you like ragamusic you really should listen on tuesday 23 November at 23.05 PM to this WDR3-radio broadcast devoted to Kaushiki.

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WDR3 live-radiobroadcast ragaconcert Kaushiki 10 November 2010 in Bielefeld

Her voice and music are breathtaking and soultouching and of a heartbreaking beauty, to put it mildly.


Kaushiki sings raag Multani in Amsterdam, 2007

In the past couple of years I’ve tried to tell about Kaushiki’s extraordinary musical powers in some of my writings on the web etc , in my programme Gharana and in this radioprogramme. Phenomenal Patiala ragasinger Kaushiki Chakrabarty from Calcutta performs in Bielefeld (Germany) on Wednesday 10 November and this concert will be broadcasted live on WDR3 Radio, starting at 8.05 PM.


Kaushiki sings ‘Yaad Piya Ki Aaye’ in Amsterdam, 2007

I like the way WDR Radio has tried to put in words the qualities of Kaushiki: “Die Sängerin Kaushiki aus Kolkata hat eine phänomenale Stimme und die stupende Fähigkeit, jede Nuance der großen traditionellen Form- und Melodiemodelle perfekt umzusetzen, von expressiven Wendungen, die ins herz treffen, bis zu Läufen und Koloraturen, die mit atemberaubender Geschwindigkeit ablaufen.” A very true, good description.

If you happen to like ragamusic the WDR-radiotransmission is not-to-be-missed!


Kaushiki performs a bhajan in bhairavi, concert in Amsterdam, 2007

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Documentary on Valentina Lisitsa’s Rachmaninoff Project 2009-2010

In January 2010 I published on my Youtube-channel a documentary – divided in three parts – on Valentina Lisitsa‘s Rachmaninoff recording project in London.

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London, December 2009: me and Val at the end of a joyful day of stunning recording sessions in the Abbey Road Studios.

Valentina’s Rachmaninoff project concerns the recording of piano concerti 1 to 4 and the Paganini Variations and probably a few pieces for piano solo. The documentary focuses on the first phase of the project, the recording of piano concertos 1 and 2. Interviews with Valentina Lisitsa, conductor Michael Francis and producer Michael Fine are alternated with impressions of the recording sessions.

Documentary: Valentina Lisitsa’s Rachmaninoff Project 1/3

Documentary: Valentina Lisitsa’s Rachmaninoff Project 2/3

Documentary: Valentina Lisitsa’s Rachmaninoff Project 3/3

Hope you’ll enjoy this!

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