Ragas to Reels for Kids

Indian pianist/composer Utsav Lal, often known as the “Raga Pianist,” has set a precedent with his creative vision and innovative handling of Indian classical music. 

Performing on an instrument traditionally considered unsuitable for Hindustani classical music, the classical and jazz pianist has had an impressive career which includes solo performances and extensive collaborative work with Irish, Scottish and Indian musicians. Utsav has performed at leading global venues like Carnegie Hall, Southbank Centre, and the John F Kennedy Center as well as Indian classical, jazz, silent film, and world music festivals. He holds the distinction of being the first to introduce the piano at the 137th Harivallabh Sammelan, India’s oldest classical music festival. Utsav’s work has been recognized with several awards, including a nomination as a Young Steinway Artist (2010). He released his debut record at the age of 16 with Times Music record label and has since released five subsequent records for worldwide distribution.

Utsav is an ABRSM scholar with an honors bachelor of music in jazz from Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, a Yamaha Jazz Scholar, and a master of music in contemporary improvisation from New England Conservatory of Music. Trained under leading music faculty, he explores his work on Indian classical music under the tutelage of Dhrupad maestro Ustad Wasifuddin Dagar. His music has a powerful intensity that sweeps the audience into a transcendental journey and is known for its sincerity, simplicity, and depth.

Sam Comerford is a musician and composer from Dublin, living in Brussels, Belgium. He composes for and leads the trio Thunderblender, whose debut album Stillorgan was released by WERF records in 2020. His current projects include a solo saxophone album based on the music of Irish fiddler Tommie Potts, a second album with Thunderblender, and the soundtrack of experimental horror film Hexham Heads. 

Comerford tours and records in various projects incorporating elements of jazz, improvised music, and Irish music. These include Neil Ó Loclainn’s Cuar (IE), Hendrik Lasure & warm bad (BE), Aerie (DE/IE/CH), Umbra (IE), Insufficient Funs (IE), Augusto Pirroda Septet (IT/BE), ODIL (BE/CH/FR), Mobilhome (BE), Utsav Lal & Ragas to Reels, Teh Trio (TW), Hayden Chisholm saxophone quartet (IE, 2013), and European Saxophone Ensemble (2012-13), led by Guillaume Orti. 

Comerford has been awarded the Toots Thielemans Award from the KCB, the “Best Soloist” prize from the Concours Tremplin d’Avignon, and has been supported by the Arts Council of Ireland, Music Network, and the Vlaamse Overheid. 

Photo credit: Chloë Delanghe

A vocalist, scholar, and multi-instrumentalist whose voice has been described as “a thick ephemera” (New York Times), with an “aching emotional intensity” (JazzTimes), Ganavya’s recent works include writing and singing the first Tamil words to win a Latin Grammy; soloing as a vocalist on Esperanza Spalding's Grammy-winning Songwrights Apothecary Lab; and composing, dancing, and singing for Peter Sellars’ filmwork.