In this enthralling performance, four amazing percussionists, all soloists in their own right, will take you on a breath-taking journey. Brought together as an ensemble by Talwalkar, the concert is an unpretentious tribute to Bhai Gurmit Singh Ji Virdee in whose memory the Darbar Festival was started in 2006.

One of the edgiest feelings is to watch the musicians perform a sound-check on stage. The look of uncertainty and dissatisfaction in the eyes of the musicians is unnerving. Particularly for an individual who is attending an Indian classical concert for the first time, this equates to being greeted by the anti-climax at the very beginning.

But at the same time, there is a certain charm and privilege to witness this process as it normally happens behind the curtains and in total oblivion of the concert-goer. But due to the usual format of a live Darbar concert, one gets to watch this process; It adds heavily to the enigmatic journey of the concert – one from the highly uncertain to that of a towering and self-assured certainty.

But of course, nothing in the journey is scripted because Indian classical music is played impromptu and improvised at the spur of the moment.

If this excites you, then prepare to be thrilled as these ace musicians take an immediate plunge into a confident camaraderie of mystical rhythms from north Indian and south Indian repertoires, blending them into a refreshing form with the same excitement of an avant-garde, nail-biting espionage series.

Each musician steals the show, Udupa’s cherubic charm is endearing and it is heart-warming to see the ensemble bow down and touch the feet of Singh on stage - a typical way of showing reverence to seniors in India.

Satyajit Talwalkar (tabla)
Sukhwinder Singh (jori)
Sai Giridhar (mridangam)
Giridhar Udupa (ghatam)
Milind Kulkarni (harmonium)
Filmed at Darbar Festival 2015