Known and loved by top musicians and music lovers, Josh Feinberg represents the future of sitar in the 21st century, and the growing diversity of the Hindustani music field. Widely regarded as a leading sitarist of his generation, and a torchbearer for the Maihar Gharana, Josh has a fresh approach to sitar with something unique to say. Josh began his musical training at 4 years old with western classical and jazz on piano and bass in New York City, studying with some of the most accomplished musicians on the scene. He was hailed as a prodigy performing in jazz venues and concert halls across the New York area including Lincoln Center, Alice Tully Hall, and many others. In his teens, Josh became enamoured with the music of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Pandit Nikhil Banerjee, and shifted his focus to sitar and Hindustani music.
Josh is a student of the Maihar Gharana (school of playing) and has established himself as a leading sitarist of his generation and is making a name for himself with connoisseurs of Hindustani music, as well art music communities around the world. One of the first non-Indian musicians to be accepted as a leading performer, Josh has learned with sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan as well as Ust. Aashish Khan, Sri Alam Khan, Pt. Tejendra Majumdar, Dr. Peter Row, Dr. George Ruckert, Sri James Pomerantz, Sri Warren Senders and Smt. Vijaya Sundaram.
Josh recorded his debut album, Homage, featuring tabla maestro Swapan Chaudhuri and released his second album, One Evening in Spring, in November 2014 featuring tabla maestro Anindo Chatterjee. Josh was a featured performer in the 2016 Chicago World Music Festival joined with Pt. Anindo Chatterjee. Josh's new album with Pt. Anindo Chatterjee, A Fallen Blossom in the Thorns was released in early 2017. Josh has also accompanied Sri Alam Khan, the son of Ust. Ali Akbar Khan, in the US and India at prestigious venues such as the Saptak Festival in Ahmedabad, and the Dover Lane Music Conference in Kolkata. (Saptak and Dover Lane are two of the biggest Hindustani music festivals in the world with thousands of people in attendance.) Josh also accompanied Alam-ji for a for a national broadcast for Doordarshan, one of the largest TV networks in India. Josh has performed as a soloist all over the world organizations including the Chicago World Music Festival, Durham University in the UK, Purdue University, Chowdhury House Music Conference in Kolkata, the Rahimat Khan Music Festival in Dharwad, Basant Bahar in San Francisco, The Music Circle in LA, Ragamala in Seattle, Kalakendra in Portland, Chhandayan in New York City, Harvard University, ITCSRA in Kolkata, SPICMACAY in Delhi, Sangit Mahabharati in Mumbai, Ragamala Toronto, Chhandayan NYC, and the Ravi Shankar Institute for Music and Performing Arts. Josh's concerts have been very well received, garnering rave reviews, especially in Kolkata and Pune. He has been hailed as the torchbearer for the Pt. Nikhil Banerjee baj of the Maihar Gharana.
In 2013, Josh published a sitar method book for the Hal Leonard Corporation, the world's largest music publisher. Josh has performed throughout the US, Canada, India and Europe and has also collaborated with artists such as Alam Khan, Savion Glover, Richie Barshay (Herbie Hancock), Patrick Lamb, Gideon Freudmann (with music featured on the Showtime drama Weeds), David Ornette Cherry (Don Cherry), and many others. Josh has a Bachelors in Music from New England Conservatory, and a Masters of Fine Arts from Goddard College. Josh currently teaches at Lewis and Clark College, and Reed College in Portland, and has offered courses at the University of Oregon.
