Anushka Shankar, sitar virtuoso. “My father was my first teacher, my guru”

With her piercing gaze and long black hair, this sitar virtuoso has toured world stages since the age of 14, collaborating with conductor Zubin Mehta, the Ibey sisters, Patti Smith and Herbie Hancock, and even her Oscar-winning director husband. Joe Wright, for whom he composed the soundtrackAnna Karenina. Anushka inherited the talent from her father, Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. Open-mindedness from his spiritual uncle, Beatle George Harrison. Deciding to journey into Indian music after nine Grammy Award nominations, at the age of 42, she released a new album, Chapter II: What’s dark before the dawn? In the curves of magnetic ragas and electronic layers, one gets the impression of traveling in a modern art installation, highlighted by luminous streams.

Madame Figaro. – Your album seems to invite us to live in a suspended universe where all gravity is eased. Did you intend it as an exercise in spiritual resilience?
Anushka Shankar. – In an era governed by the high speed of digital technology, the culture of the instant and the immediacy of messages, I have granted myself the luxury of carte blanche; a musical space of reflection where we can slow down the clock and let you be. obsessed with a kind of meditative musical equations. This record is also a tribute to my father, who believed that music does not answer questions, it provokes them. Its true meaning is revealed through the various visions and tension games it instills in the audience.

Preceded by the first opus, titled Chapter 1 : forever, for now, this disc is the second chapter of a trilogy you’ve been working on for five years. Next to the visual installation is a sound work. Can you describe your approach?
With my treble I try to transform into music the natural lights that I have methodically observed every day for five years; I watched the dawn in many different corners of the world, from London to Goa, from the ocean to California and the Mediterranean Sea in Greece. This exercise based on repetition may seem monotonous, but it helps to notice important micro-differences in perception and to have Matisse-like reflections; We can reproduce lighting effects in music. These are what I call ‘seeds of sound’, each creating its own aura like a shadow.

How do your father Ravi Shankar’s teachings carry over into your quest? ?
My father was my first teacher, my guru. He was 70 years old when he decided to teach me the Carnatic music of South India and the Hindustani style of North India. These two musical traditions are extremely complex. they require a mad mastery of rhythms and harmonies, improvisational ingenuity, and meticulous research. When I was 13 years old, I went on tour with him. Contrary to what one might imagine, I was not only raised in an atmosphere of silent meditation. Musicians came and went all the time, studying, improvising, or playing musical games around the dining table. My father wanted to convey the magic of Indian music, which finds its roots in the sacred texts of the Vedic religion, to all cultures. Like him, I want my music to open up and evolve.

What to upgrade? ?
A retro image of our tools. The world still has a very limited view of me, equating it with an old man sitting in a lotus position, hippie iconography, or supposedly soothing elevator music. But the sitar is also a very sexy, powerful instrument that relates to character bastard. Cooperating with musicians of rock and electronic music, I try to break the clichés, erase the exotic side of the sitar.

My father wanted to convey the magic of Indian music to all cultures

Anushka Shankar

What are your techniques for recreating the modern sitar sound we hear on this album? ?
How I use this tool here has never been explored. I use a pedal like the guitarists, and I’ve spent years exploring new sounds that can be created from the sitar, creating loops, echoes, distortions, or shock effects. I have created a palette of additional sounds that expand my compositional spectrum and produce new music. Most of us want to clean up the image our tools convey. Young classical violinist Esther Abrami, for example, has attracted hundreds of thousands of young people with her cutting-edge approach.

With conductor Gustavo Dudamel and singer Michael Bublé, you are part of the muses of the House of Rolex, which, through the Initiative Perpetual Arts program, joins forces with artists to perpetuate the artistic heritage of…
I’m always enthusiastic when a luxury house pursues a philanthropic quest and puts itself at the service of art. This is the case of Rolex, which has been running a mentoring program for over twenty years, where leading artists and from all fields support promising young artists by providing knowledge and experience. These exchanges between mentors and protégés are fascinating in both painting (David Hockney and Matthias Weischer) and music. I was very moved by the interaction between Zakir Hussain, the great Indian tabla player, and Marcus Gilmore, the jazz drummer. This is another way to create bridges between the past, present and future.

New album. Chapter II: What’s dark before the dawn Six seven. The next concert is on April 3 and 4 at the Paris Philharmonic. philharmoniedeparis.fr: