Imagine two sounds meeting one another. One familiar and comforting, and the other new, inviting curiosity.
The former comes from the sitar, its strings ringing together, creating beautiful melodies. The latter comes from the didgeridoo — a long and hollow wind instrument from Australian culture — whose deep and sustained tones bring a contrasting element to the mix.
What if these two instruments and their instrumentalists created a musical dialogue through shared rhythm?
If such a crossover is hard to imagine, don’t fret because this fusion experience is coming to Chennai this weekend.
First Nations Australian artiste William Barton and renowned Indian sitar maestro Pandit Shubhendra Rao are presenting ‘Sacred Pathways: Where Ragas Meet Songlines’, an initiative by the Australian Government in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
The collaboration stemmed as an idea when Shubendra was meeting with Australia’s High Commissioner to India, Philip Green. “There is so much value that each of our cultures brings to the world. So to come together and give an expression that only music can, backed by the ancient history of both our musical traditions is exciting,” he says. “Both the instruments are iconic and when they come together to find commonalities through a spiritual approach, it'll definitely be special,” he asserts.
Returning to India after over a decade to perform, William adds, “This performance is very special to me as well because the songlines are of our mother country, both musically and spiritually. So it comes from a sacred musical place. ”
Through original compositions and collaborative performance, anchored by percussionist Nishit Gangani, William and Shubhendra are set to perform in Chennai on Sunday, October 18, after staging their performances in New Delhi and Bengaluru this week.
What makes this collaboration all the more exciting is that the two musicians met in person for the first time just two days before their debut concert in Delhi. Despite their brief time together, they remain confident about bringing their unique musical worlds together on stage. “Our musical journey is going to evolve organically over the next few concerts,” William says. “We will be seeing how we can improvise and help each other to build a skeletal framework. Everything else, we’ll be building on it,” Shubhendra seconds.
The performances are set to be the curtain raisers to ‘G’day Namaste’ — the Australian Government’s flagship festival that will be held in December, aimed at celebrating Australia-India ties across business, education, sport, innovation, and culture.
Hoping to take the city’s audiences on a musical journey that bridges the two countries and brings their distinct traditions together, William concludes, “We are here to pass on the legacy and to expand that canvas of acknowledgement but also respect across different nations. I’ll be thinking of my mom, dad, and all my people back home while performing so the audiences can feel that they are part of our musical journey.”
The event is free and open to all but registration on the District app is mandatory.