An online course in Hindustani Classical Vocal Music Connoisseurship
Become a rasik of the khayal through this unique online course that grounds you in basic principles, and takes you on a whirlwind tour across eras, gharanas and master musicians. Discover iconic and rare recordings, get a grasp on how raag, taal and bandish really work. Gain a scholarly perspective on the music and its history.
Acquire taste, and join a robust community of connoissuers led by Srijan Deshpande.
New Cohort Launching Soon! Limited Seats!
Course dates: Every Sunday, from 11 January 2026 – 29 March 2026
Course Hours: 09:00 am – 10:30am PST (12:00pm-1:30pm EST / 5:00pm-5:30pm GMT)
Basic Principles
Acquire a thorough grounding in basic principles and basic theory. Acquire a critical vocabulary, understand and discuss how the music works.
Guided Listening
Discover rare archival music and uncover gems hidden within widely available music, through expertly curated playlists, to acquire taste.
Meet Maestros
Discover the cults and cultures within Hindustani music. Get to know the greats and their music intimately, discover quirky and colourful musicians, and understand the culture of the music.
Research Based
Acquire a scholarly, research-based grounding in this music’s history, culture and aesthetics: Where did it come from and where is it going? How does it fit in the larger scheme of things? Ask the big questions.
More About the Course
12 Live Weekly Sessions on Zoom
Each class will be 1.5 hours in length and will include detailed explanations of foundational concepts, demonstrated through live singing and recordings of the masters. Guided listening with expert comments are an important part of this course, and questions and vigorous discussions are welcome! This is your chance to ask the stupid questions about music you’ve always wanted to ask. (Hint: there are no stupid questions!)
Recordings and Recommendations!
Particpants will be exposed to rare and choice recordings from the archives of the Samvaad Foundation in addition to curated playlists on YouTube and from around the internet. All participants will gain access to expertly curated playlists on the various themes of the course. For those with a scholarly bent of mind, there will be many recommendations for extra reading, ranging from serious musicology to fun musician stories!
Innovative Tech and Fun Assignments
The course makes use of fascinating technological tools to visualize and explain difficult musical concepts, including taal animations, pitch-graphs to help recognize notes, and visual notations of musical passages. Optional fun assignments that will really get you into the music include: notating a piece of music using visual notation software, writing a scholarly or appreciative article, completing a research assignment, or, for the singers among you, learning a gharana bandish!
An Always-Growing Community
In between our weekly sessions, the cohort will continue to be in touch through a WhatsApp group on which we will share music and continue our conversations. The group will be kept alive even at the end of the course, and the community will continue to grow as more and more cohorts complete the course.
Meet Your Instructor
Srijan Deshpande is a performer, scholar, writer, and archivist of Hindustani classical vocal music. He has received extensive training in performance and scholarship from his father, the illustrious singer and musicologist Pt. Satyasheel Deshpande. Srijan has over two decades of experience teaching music to beginners and advanced students, conducting courses on music at various universities, and documenting and studying music at various music archives. He has a PhD in musicology from Manipal University India, and is currently a research associate at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Srijan is also a fellow of the New India Foundation, and is writing a major biography of Pt. Kumar Gandharva with its support. Srijan performs and teaches music out of Fremont, CA.
