Roopa Panesar and Friends

Fusing the worlds of Indian Classical, Jazz and Western Classical music, Roopa Panesar brings us a night of music that will both thrill you with its incredible virtuosity and provide moments of calmness and serenity. Regarded as one of the UK’s greatest sitar players, she’ll be accompanied for this performance by percussionists from both the Hindustani and Carnatic traditions: tabla player Shabaz Hussain and Carnatic percussionist RN Prakash. This event is the first of a new partnership with the Asian Arts Agency, which will see us bringing a wide range of South Asian artists and musical stars to Oxford over the coming years.

About the Artist

Roopa Panesar is considered one of the finest sitar players to emerge on the Indian classical music scene from the UK. Embracing Indian classical music as well as jazz and western classical genres, Roopa Panesar leaves audiences captivated and peers filled with respect. Roopa’s outstanding musical ability has resulted in a stream of high-profile national and international concerts, tours, and televised performances including the BBC1 televised VJ75 memorial in the presence of HRH The Prince of Wales, and working with the Belgian Symphony Orchestra. Roopa Panesar has also collaborated with Mercury Prize winner Talvin Singh and been a participating musician at London’s prestigious Darbar Festival of Indian classical music and dance and WOMAD UK.

Born in London and raised in one of the UK’s most culturally diverse cities, Leicester, afforded Roopa Panesar the opportunity to learn sitar from an early age. At the age of seven, Roopa’s lifelong journey with renowned educationalist and leading UK musician Ustad Dharambir Singh MBE started. Ustad Dharambir Singh was a disciple of the late Ustad Vilayat Khan. Roopa was quickly recognized as a talent for the future, and remains with her musical guru to this day. Roopa’s knowledge and skills have also been strengthened by additional training from masters including Pandit Arvind Parikh, Ustad Shahid Parvez, Pt. Buddhaditya Mukherjee and Ustad Bahauddin Dagar. Roopa Panesar proudly joins the modest number of Indian females worldwide who have launched their careers as full-time touring and teaching sitar players.

This concert is produced in association with the Asian Arts Agency