Indian guitarist slides into USU
For many fans, there’s really only one way to pronounce klasi-kel kar-natic gitar’ist:
Pra-sanna.
Coming to Utah State University from 7 – 9 p.m. Monday in the Eccles Conference Center, the performance centers around the instrumental skills of one of the leading artists in contemporary Indian music.
“It costs a lot [to bring Prasanna],” said Indian Student Association cultural secretary Shyam Kumar. “It costs around $3,000. There are many people who are sponsoring this event.”
Included in the list of sponsors are many organizations at USU and around the community, including the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS), USU Department of Music, KSM Music, Kinko’s and the International Student Council (ISC).
Graduating magna cum-laude from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Prasanna has composed music for 10 Carnatic albums which led H.H. Sri Jayendra Saraswathi, a spiritual leader in India, to award him the “Lifetime Achievement Award for Carnatic Music” in 2003. Carnatic music refers to the classical music of southern India.
Prasanna’s work includes several other albums ranging from “Peaceful,” a solo guitar album, to “Be the Change,” a jazz fusion album which features several Grammy Award winning guest artists.
“[Prasanna] has created a distinctive and effective guitar style that is as instantly recognizable as that of Carlow Santana or Jimi Hendrix,” said Jazz Times music critic David Adler.
Prasanna has also been awarded the “Berklee College of Music Composition Achievement Award” for his outstanding work as a classical composer and the “Berklee College of Music Guitar Achievement Award” for his work as a jazz guitarist.
“It’s not often that we listen to musicians/bands that present dazzling chops in concert with a structured and divergent production all equating to a high fun factor,” jazz critic Glenn Astarita said. “Prasanna has made his mark, now it’s up to the willing listener to seek out and listen to this superb effort.”
Prasanna will be accompanied by Lakshman on the Mridangam, a traditional Indian percussion instrument.
Tickets are free for USU students with a current ID and $10 for general admission. Tickets are available at the TSC Ticket Office. Contact Shyam Kumar at 512-8960 with questions.
-mattgo@cc.usu.edu