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While
completing her master's in ethnomusicology from the
university of Amsterdam, Saskia's love for Indian
classical music took her to the conservatory of
Rotterdam to study under Koustav Ray and Pt Hariprasad
Chaurasia. With no precedent to follow, Saskia has
worked with singular dedication to adapt the cello to
Indian classical music. Her playing style enables her
to bring out the subtleties and the embellishments
characteristic of north Indian classical music. She
has incorporated new techniques that allow her to
nurture the inherent closeness of the cello to the
human voice and to explore unrestrained, the
brilliance of her instrument.
Saskia
is based in Delhi with her husband Shubhendra Rao,
well-known sitarist of the Maihar gharana, from whom
she continues to learn the finer intricacies of Indian
music. They also compose and play together pieces that
are based purely on Indian classical ragas as well as
compositions in which their different musical
backgrounds are explored.
Saskia
is the first non-Indian to have been invited to
perform at the prestigious Doverlane Conference
in Kolkotta and has performed at major venues in India
and abroad.
Next
to Indian classical music, Saskia's varied experiences
include:Jewish Klezmer, Experiments with the Flamenco
guitar, Theatre compositions with guitarist Erik
Vaarzon Morel, many projects in European folk music
and Western classical chamber music.
These
rich experiences have won her a unique place in the
field of World Music.
EDUCATION
Saskia started learning the cello at the age of 8 from the late cello maestro Tibor de
Machula. Her talent was soon recognized and she was chosen to play in popular ensembles like the national students' orchestra. The artiste in her grew by leaps and bounds because of her study in chamber music at prestigious summer- camps in the Netherlands and in the USA.
Her interest in Indian classical music took root when she was studying for her master's degree at the university of Amsterdam.
To complete her thesis, she came to India in 1994,
where she started learning Indian Music and its theory
from Dr. Sumati Mutatkar. During her subsequent visits to India she also studied under eminent artistes such as Pt
D.K. Datar of Bombay and Pt Deepak Chowdhury of Calcutta.
Her thesis from the university of Amsterdam explored the different uses of notation in Indian music and on the possibilities and impossibilities of the sargam notation.
At
the conservatory of Rotterdam Saskia studied under
cellist Ubaldo Arcari.
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