Bijay Shrestha
Music from around the world will be featured this weekend during the University of Idaho’s annual World Music Celebration featuring the event’s first-ever sitar player, Bijay Shrestha from Nepal.
Born to professional musicians, Shrestha started learning to play the tabla – an Indian percussion instrument made of a pair of drums – at age four, earning a master’s degree in tabla by the age of 18. Shortly thereafter, he earned a master’s degree in sitar, becoming the first young musician in Nepal to earn master’s degrees in both instruments, according to a news release.
Friday’s concert is at 7:30 p.m. in the UI Administration Auditorium. Tickets sold at the door are $8 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens. The concert will also include performances by the Lionel Hampton School of Music’s Jazz Band I, Jazz Choir I, World Beat Ensemble, and Flute Ensemble.
Shrestha will teach a free master class, “Discovering the Sound of Sitar,” from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. Saturday in the Haddock Performance Hall at the Lionel Hampton School of Music on campus.
