Raga pianist hits a winning chord

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At 14, Utsav Lal Bollywood icon was featured in the Limca Book of Records for his unique rendition of Hindustani classical music on the piano. Now 20, he recently bagged the Indus Entrepreneurs Young Achiever’s award.

Known as a ‘Raga Pianist’, his musical training encompasses three diverse genres of Western classical, Indian classical and jazz. “Learning jazz is almost like a passport to understanding music from around the world and to be able to play along with it. But I think Indian classical music is the one that touches you the most,” says the musician.
He was born and brought up in Delhi, but is currently learning music in Glasgow. He has presented over 150 concerts at worldwide venues and festivals since he was nine. Utsav shares, Utsav adds, “My guru Ustad Wasifuddin Dagar, a dhrupad exponent, influenced my music in the alap section. Pianists such as Horowitz, Keith Jarrett and composers like Debussy, Ravel are my other sources of inspirations.”
Is he able to justify classical ragas on a piano, as one can’t produce microtones on a piano? “It was something that got me bogged down at first. But I believe Indian musical instruments have their strengths and weaknesses, which are complemented by the strengths that the piano has, like its range, access to harmony, percussive nature and variety of tones from really soft touches to a huge thundering sound,” he says.
Utsav hopes to take ragas on the piano across the globe. “It’s a different experience playing for both the audience. Playing abroad gives me ample time to work on the slower musical beats. However, in India, people tend to appreciate faster climaxes and rhythmic things more,” says Utsav.