Anoushka Shankar, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse - music review

"This is the most intimate performance experience I've had," said Anoushka Shankar as she walked on stage with her sitar, "it's like the most gorgeous living room." And certainly one of the biggest thrills about concerts here is the space itself. There’s a warm sound from the intimate acoustics and a warm glow from the candlelight.

This was the last of four concerts celebrating Bengali Nobel Prize-winning writer and composer Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941). He was hugely admired by Ravi Shankar, Anoushka’s father, who was also of Bengali heritage. In Saturday’s concert this meant focusing on Indian ragas used by Tagore in his music and songs. She began with raga Purvi, an stately evening raga that is far from any Western scale so sounds very exotic. At first she created a mood of calm and then yearning once the tabla joined in.

Tabla player Tanmoy Bose was a favourite of Ravi Shankar’s in his later years, and, having worked together frequently, were exchanging familial smiles and laughs — making us in the audience laugh too. She followed with a beautiful piece in raga Charukeshi composed for her by her father. To its warm, sultry melody Anoushka added exquisite filigree decoration.

Finally, Anoushka and Tanmoy Bose were joined by Pirashanna Thevarajah on mridangam (south Indian drum) and Sanjeev Shankar — no relation — on shenai (oboe), although he seemed inhibited about playing too loudly. It was like watching a group of friends having fun, Anoushka apologising when she suddenly raced off at a ferocious pace. Uplifting.