MUMBAI: Red Bull Music Academy’s ‘Studio Science’ looks inside the laboratories of some of the world’s most creative minds, offering tips and tricks for aspiring musicians. The series has featured pop legends Disclosure, acclaimed British electronic producer Four Tet and electronic music pioneer Suzanne Ciani among others. Now, Studio Science turns its attention to tabla pioneer and celebrated multi-instrumentalist Karsh Kale, in it’s first-ever episode shot in India.

The episode premieres on Red Bull Music Academy's YouTube channel on 14 June, and features Karsh alongside the Karsh Kale Collective.

British-born, New York raised-and-based producer Karsh Kale is regarded as one of the most dynamic artists on the international stage. He successfully straddles the worlds of classical and contemporary music, fusing West and East into a sound that’s distinctly his own. He has collaborated with international icons –Sting, Herbie Hancock, Alicia Keys, Norah Jones – and from playing at music festivals around the world to performing at the White House, has helped create a musical sub-genre that continues to influence an entire generation.

The apparent ease with which Karsh melds tabla bol to the structure of beats per minute in electronic music made him the perfect candidate for ‘Studio Science.’ In this episode, he takes viewers through his inspirations and how he designed and uses the tabla in an electronic context, before jamming with the Karsh Kale Collective.

“I love the idea of bringing people into the intimate details of our unique studio approaches and set ups. Each artist figures their own way to navigate the infinite possibilities of the studio and Red Bull Music Academy ‘Studio Science’ is a great platform to open that door for aspiring artists and producers,” says Karsh.

“The years have proven one thing to me – that there is no software, controllers, loopers, or other gear on this planet that can come close to replacing the chemistry that happens when musicians come together to make music. The ideas always remain human. I think young artists need to be less concerned with what gear they are using and more about gaining more human experience.”

In line with his musical vision, the Karsh Kale Collective performed two songs, ‘Up’ from the 2016 album by the same name, which features the tabla at its core, and ‘Unkahi’, a song by Delhi duo Shadow and Light.

The Collective includes guitarist Warren Mendonsa of Blackstratblues, bansuri (flute) player Ajay Prasanna, Jai Row Kavi on drums, Karan Deshmukh on percussions, Apeksha Dandekar on vocals, Nathan Thomas on bass and Delhi-based live act Shadow and Light (Anindo and Pavithra).

Check out the video below: