Vinay Desai, Santoor Recital

Vinay Desai will be presenting a Santoor recital at the Drive East 2018 on Wednesday, August 15th at 7:15 p.m. DRIVE EAST: Drive East (driveeastnyc.org) is an expansive Indian dance and music festival that features 30+ concerts in just two week. In its sixth year, our week long festival will be in New York from August 13 - 19 and San Francisco from August 22 - 26. It is a festival that regularly features some of the best artists of the year from all over the globe(last year The New York Times mentioned two Drive East artists as the top 10 of 2017) and is an immersive experience into the world of Indian classical arts. Whether you are a seasoned patron or interested in learning more, there is an experience for everyone in this extraordinary festival. VINAY DESAI: Initially, Vinay received knowledge in vocal/harmonium/tabla from Shafiq Rahman in his teens. After completing his college in both Pre-pharmaceutical science as well as Pre-Law in Delaware, Vinay sought out to learn Santoor in India. In 2011, with blessings and direct guidance of Padma Vibhushan Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Vinay began his studies under Takahiro Arai and Dhananjay Daithankar. He later moved back to USA to learn from Kunal Gunjal. To expand his knowledge in music, Vinay has learnt from different Maestros such as late Pandit Ramesh Mishraji, Parthasarathi Chatterjee, Jay Gandhiji, Suryaksha Deshpandejii, and sits with Maestros who come through Shanti Mandir for performances to expand his knowledge and receive the invaluable blessings of them all. Now vinay learns from Pandit Shivkumar Sharma directly. His music is influenced by his stay in Ashrams and ancient practices of meditation and yoga. His music is interwoven with the general feeling of peace and stillness interspersed with lively, powerful and rhythmic phrases. He currently resides at Shanti Mandir, Walden where he manages their spiritual centers around the world and continues his studies and performances of Santoor regularly. Drive East 2018 Featuring: Arushi Mudgal (odissi), Shijith N Parvathy (Bharatanatyam), Shruthi Kezhakepuram Purushotham (Mohiniyattam), Dr. Anwesa Mahanta (Sattriya), Mesma S. Belsare (Bharatanatyam), Sujit Vaidya and group (Contemporary), Kiran Rajagopalan (Contemporary), Navatman Dance (Bharatanatyam), Anuj Mishra and group (Kathak), Sandip Mallick and Group (Kathak), Preeti and Piyush (Kathak), Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose (Bharatanatyam), Prabal Gupta (Kathakali), Dr. Ragunath Manet, Nehaa Mondal Chakravarty (Bharatanatyam), Bhavana Reddy (Kuchipudi), Alam Khan (Sarode), Vishal Vaid (Ghazals), Vinay Desai (Santoor), Navatman Music Collective (Carnatic Vocal Choir), Nirmala Rajasekar and Group (Saraswati Veena), Flute Raman Trio, Pt. Rattan Mohan Sharma