Baluji Shrivastav

Music to stimulate the mind, the heart and the soul, Indian Rhythm and percussion meets western jazz. Baluji Shrivastav is one of the great musicians that has emerged from India specialising in sitar, surbahar (bass sitar), dilruba, pakhavaj and tabla. As well as being an exciting musician he is a great ambassador for the Indian music.

The traditional way to gain the knowledge of ‘guru-shishya’ (teacher-student) demands that the shishya offers favour to the guru which, with Baluji being blind, made this part of his learning process very difficult. Without any sort of musical tradition in his family he was self taught, not even guided by famous gurus. His incredible success has come through natural talent, hard work and pure dogged determination.

When he was very young he toured India playing with the National Ballet Troupe. This exposed him to the rich variety of regional musical styles which have become a lifelong source of inspiration.

The outstanding characteristic of Baluji’s musical career is his versatility. A great connoisseur of Hindustani classic tradition along with an ability to concentrate on sound as his primary mode of interaction with the world. This has enriched his musicality and is reflected in his approach to music.

As a composer Baluji has created new music such as ‘Portraits of the Dark’, a specially commissioned piece which uses music and drama  to describe Baluji’s own life as a blind musician, ‘Sitar-Guitar Suites’ and the oratorio ‘Sohini and Mahival’. He has performed all over the world and has recorded albums with a wide variety of western artists such as Massive Attack, Future Sound of London, Oasis, Annie Lennox, Andy Sheppard and Guy Barker.

www.baluji.com