How Utsav Lal forged a connection between dhrupad and the piano

Utsav Lal | Photo Credit: Courtesy: Lila Barth Dhrupad and piano. It may sound like an unlikely combination, but Utsav Lal has forged a strong connection between the two. He never viewed the piano merely as a Western instrument, but as a medium through which to explore the melodic and improvisatory possibilities of dhrupad. In the process, he earned the moniker ‘raga pianist’. His musical world extends far beyond Indian classical traditions, drawing inspiration from jazz pioneers Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor, Ethiopian pianist Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou and the avant-garde band, The Necks.One of Utsav’s pet projects is the Indo-Irish collaboration — Utsav Lal’s Ragas to Reels — which returns to India for a four-city tour. He will be joined by the fiddle player Winifred Horan, flautist-saxophonist Sam Comerford and tabla artiste Zuheb Ahmed Khan across six shows. Utsav Lal first presented ‘Ragas to Reels’ in 2008 with flautist-saxophonist Sam Comerford. | Photo Credit: Courtesy: samcomerford.com After performing at Mumbai’s Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre and ITC Grand Maratha (September 6 and 7), they will head to Sheraton, New Delhi (September 8, followed by a show at the Bengaluru International Centre (September 9) and ITC Grand Chola, Chennai (September 10). The tour will conclude at Piano Man in New Delhi on September 13.“Ragas to Reels is a project close to my heart because of my deep connection with Ireland, where I spent much of my teenage years,” says Utsav. “I first presented in 2008 with Sam Comerford and the collaboration has since evolved over multiple editions across Ireland, England, India and the U.S. It continues to take on different forms, with a rotating ensemble of musicians.” Tabla artiste Zuheb Ahmed Khan has been performing with Utsav Lal for more than a decade. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement Utsav says, “It’s been a while since I last planned an extensive tour of India. When we were looking at possibilities, Ragas to Reels seemed to fit beautifully within the cultural showcase plans of the Embassy of Ireland in New Delhi. I’ve known and played with Winifred Horan for a decade now, though, I knew and loved her music way before that.”Winifred and Sam joined Utsav for the premiere run of Ragas to Reels in New York. “It feels special to have them with us in India along with Zuheb who I’ve been playing with for over a decade too,” beams the pianist. Fiddle player Winfred Horan is part of Utsav Lal’s ‘Ragas to Reels’ India tour in September. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement Utsav, who is now based in New York, has fond memories of his earlier tours in India with Ragas to Reels. “We had an overwhelming response both in 2011 and 2014. We were a smaller ensemble then and adding Winifred has given us a whole new perspective. One of my strongest memories from the last tour is visiting the legendary flautist Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia. Sam gifted him an Irish low whistle, which Hari ji examined with great curiosity, and in return, presented Sam with a bansuri.”tsav, who is now based in New York, has fond memories of his earlier tours in India with Ragas to Reels. “We had an overwhelming response both in 2011 and 2014. We were a smaller ensemble then and adding Winifred gives us a whole new perspective. An absolute core memory from the last trip was visiting the legendary Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia. Sam gifted him an Irish Low Whistle, which Hari ji was curious about and gifted Sam a bansuri too.”Utsav’s piano journey is interesting too. He started by playing old film songs. “I was very young and learnt from the well-known Brian Silas in Delhi. It was useful as I learnt how to play by ear. I also learnt that the Hindi film composers wrote songs based on ragas. While keeping the integrity of the raga, they would orchestrate the string and horn sections and use Latin percussion at the same time. It’s a great example of musical fusion.”That exposure, says Utsav, ignited a curiosity in him about Indian classical music. Simultaneously, he learnt western classical music, which he continued when his family shifted to Ireland. Later, he began learning dhrupad from Wasifuddin Dagar. He says, “Dhrupad involves a lot of patience and restraint, which helped me in my piano. I also learnt from violinist Sharat Chandra Srivastava and basics of khayal and intonation from US-based vocalist Warren Senders.”Utsav points out that riyaz is the biggest portion of any day. “The journey and validation is in the practice. Most of my time is spent digging deeper into ragas. . I also spend time improvising, composing, transcribing music, collaborating with friends and peers and learning music from other traditions and places. Huge part of riyaz, for me, is also thinking about why we play music, what I hope to communicate through my work and how it interacts with the world around us. Ultimately, it ends up being a journey of self-exploration through music.” Published - September 05, 2026 02:35 pm IST