sitar | stiangrimstad.se

I started sitar during my first trip to India in 1996 and went back every winter since then to explore more parts of the big field that is north Indian classical music and to improve my skills on the sitar. After my first gig in 1999 me and some fellow musicians started playing concerts in Oslo under the name Poorva Express. After moving to Stockholm in 2003 me and my wife Moa Danielson (tabla, santoor) continued as a duo. After some time we started playing with other musicians in Sweden and changed name to Palace on Wheels a somewhat loose group we still perform with. I have also had the pleasure to perform with many great artists such as Debashish Mukherjee (tabla), Suranjana Ghosh (tabla), Nandini Ghosal (Odissi dance), Rani Khanam (Kathak dance) and many more all over Europe plus India and Nepal. I enjoy a lot playing with different forms of Indian dance and do it as soon I get the chance.

In addition to classical music I have during the years been a part of many projects with people from other traditions, for instance opera, blues, classic rock, rap, trance, arabic music, flamenco, bulgarian folk music, pop, western classical music and more, somtimes with electric sitar to boost the energy a bit.

With Suranjana Ghosh from Tarang Festival in Kolkata 2018

From Ravi Shankar Festival in the Ravi Shankar center in Delhi feb 2019 with Guruji Gaurav Mazumdar and lots of Gurubrothers and sisters! Picture from Indian Television Chanel RS TV.