Snehasish Mozumder hit Andy Donnelly's top 10 in Penguin Eggs magazine and is among a new generation of recognized Indian classical musicians coming from the Indian subcontinent today. Snehasish Mozumder plays a conventional western acoustic mandolin - a mandola, to be specific. His talent comes from the sublime human voice he produces from of his instrument - be it an Indian melody, a haunting Celtic rendering or something completely different. He, together with his percussionist, improvise on North Indian classical style ragas shaped around harmonious melodies. His bassy, North Indian vocal phrasings elevate his music beyond global boundaries.

Snehasish comes from a family that maintains its musical traditions and lineage. His grandfather, the late Bibhuti Ranjan Mozumder was his first mentor. When Snehasish was four he began his music training on mandolin and tabla. His talent was further nurtured by his father, Himangshu Mozumder, his uncle, Ranjan Mozumder and his cousin, Tajendra Narayan Mozumder, the world renown sarod maestro. In establishing his career, Snehasish has taken talim or dedicated practice and instruction from eminent scholar Acharya Ajoy Sinha Roy, a disciple of maestro Baba Allauddin Khan, founder of the Maihar Senia gharana or school in Benares, the teacher of Ravi Shankar and one of the most important figures of North Indian classical music. Snehasish studied laykari or fingering techniques from musicologist Anil Palit from the Benares gharana. Gharana literally means house of the teacher originating a particular style named after the place where he resided, in this case: Benares. Anil Palit is a disciple of the tabla maestro Kishen Maharaj whose fame remains in India and often referenced in the West. Snehasish had the privilege of sharing a close relationship with the late instrumentalist, composer and arranger, Vistas Ardeshir Balsara, famous for merging pure Indian classical music with modern rhythms. V. Balsara encouraged Snehasish to bring the mandolin into the fold of North Indian classical music. Snehasish has since been passionately dedicated to this cause and has been adopting concepts in western music from Kolkata guitarist Khokan Mukherjee who was a session guitarist for filmmaker Satyajit Ray.

A highlight of Snehasish's career includes sharing the stage with musicians such as Tom Petty and Eric Clapton while in Pandit Ravi Shankar's Orchestra at Royal Albert Hall Concert for George in 2002. Snehasish enthusiastically shares his talent and innovations with diverse artists and audiences all over the world and is regularly on tour in Europe and USA.

INTERNATIONALLY RELEASED CD RECORDINGS
Mandolin Dreams, Music of the World
Different Strokes, Biswas
Worship, Biwas

Mozumder plays skillfully. The folk melody has an elogent simplicity...A worthwhile addition to any collection of Indian music - Dirty Linen

...sublimity and improvisational poise on ragas... - JazzTimes

Official Website: http://www.mandolinclassic.com