By Asia Samachar | Britain |
Sitarist and composer Jasdeep Singh Degun has been nominated for two awards for the Royal Philharmonic Society Awards 2024, dubbed by a British newspaper as the biggest night in UK classical music, taking place on March 5.
The Leeds sitarist has been nominated for the Instrumentalist Award and the Large-Scale Composition Award categories.
“I am very thankful to my teacher Ustad Dharambir Singh and to the numerous individuals and organisations that have supported me over the years,” Jasdeep said in an entry at his X, formerly Twitter, account.
Aiming to redefine genres, Jasdeep is passionate about exposing music from his heritage to audiences across the globe, according to an entry at his website.
Signed to Real World Records, Jasdeep released his debut album titled ‘Anomaly’, working under the guidance of celebrated musician and producer Nitin Sawhney. Jasdeep was announced as Artist-in-Residence at Opera North, and in 2022 he was composer, co-music director and soloist in Opera North and South Asian Arts-uk’s acclaimed opera Orpheus. This production garnered five-star reviews and earned Jasdeep a 2022 Critics’ Circle Music Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Opera”.
As a British composer, Jasdeep brings a unique perspective to composition influenced by Indian classical and western classical traditions. His upbringing and experiences have contributed to his distinctive musical voice, allowing him to create captivating and boundary-pushing music, according to his website.
The Royal Albert Hall hosted Jasdeep at the BBC Proms 2014, showcasing his own original compositions based on Indian classical music. In 2016, Jasdeep was commissioned by zer0classikal to write a concerto for sitar and string quartet, titled The Bridge. In 2017, Jasdeep wrote the soundtrack to the independent short film ‘Taraash’.
In 2020, Jasdeep was commissioned by Opera North to write a new work, ‘Arya: concerto for Sitar and Orchestra’ which premiered at the Huddersfield Town Hall. The work later went on tour with successful performances at Durham Cathedral, the RNCM, and the Birmingham CBSO to critical acclaim.
In 2022, Real World Records released Jasdeep’s debut album, Anomaly, garnering a nomination for ‘Best Album’ in the Songlines Music Awards 2023, and topping the ‘Best world music albums of 2022’ in the Financial Times.
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