EPK:

Biography:

Prosad is an international musician, composer and well known sitar player.  He has toured Canada, India, New Zealand and Australia; performing in a variety of venues from massive music festivals to pubs, concert halls, yoga centres and busking in the streets. Prosad has played sitar for Prince Edward of the United Kingdom and been the featured soloist in an orchestral concerto.  He jammed with Australian artist Xavier Rudd and was part of an ensemble who recorded on Xavier’s new album, Spirit Bird.  With multiple songs in Hollywood movies, Prosad’s fusion style sitar music is catching attention in Hollywood and beyond.  His fan base ranges from Australia and New Zealand to Europe, North America and India.  Prosad’s first sitar teacher was Shambhu Das; Ravi Shankar’s senior disciple and George Harrison’s first sitar teacher.  Since then Prosad has studied sitar in Toronto and India and is currently studying Indian music with Alam Khan, son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan Sahab.  Prosad has recorded four albums of original music and is currently working on a fifth which is a blend of styles mixing dance, reggae, Trance-Sitar and world sounds.  He divides his time between Canada and traveling the world performing.

Longer Biography:

To Really Experience Prosad You Have To See Him Perform Live

Audiences in Toronto have been growing as Prosad’s reputation has begun to build. In his frequent live shows, Prosad transports listeners to the exotic land of India with the mystical sounds of his “Trance Sitar”. Mixed with flute, Sanskrit chanting and the deep, earthy drones of the didgeridoo from Australia, Prosad fuses elements of ancient raga with modern electronic beats and live percussion. Hypnotic and trance-inducing performances are the result. Anyone who has been to a live show can tell you that it is a unique experience which feels a bit like a going to see a rock concert in a temple. The vibration is contagious and the trend is catching on.

Career Highlights

In 2006 and 2007 Prosad performed on the main stage at the World Electronic Music Festival. He has since shared the stage with internationally acclaimed musicians in the Toronto-Indo-Jazz Festival and performed at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. In 2007 Prosad was the guest soloist in the North American Debut of “Legend of Sangeet” for Brass Orchestra and Sitar. In 2008 Prosad performed for His Royal Highness Prince Edward, of the British Realms. In the same year his song, Byron Bay, was featured in the Hollywood movie, The Love Guru, starring the talented Mike Myers. In 2009 he was featured at the Mariposa Folk Festival in Orillia with nearly 20,000 people in attendance. Prosad has performed extensively around Toronto, toured Western and Eastern Canada and has been featured numerous times as the headlining artist at the “Buddha Groove”. Prosad has independently released and promoted three CDs of original music.

The Journey From Rocking a Guitar to Plucking a Sitar

Prosad knew that he wanted to be a musician since he was 13 years old. Born and raised in the prairies (Saskatoon Saskatchewan), he played in rock bands throughout high school and University and later moved to Toronto to study jazz guitar in the Humber College Music Program. Prosad graduated after 3 years of study and then went on to record two independent CDs as a singer-songwriter. Then something very special happened… he picked up a sitar.

He didn’t know it at the time, but this would change his life forever. He instantly fell in love with the hypnotic sound of this mystical instrument and began to study faithfully. At first he believed Indian Music would only ever be a hobby, but as time went on it became obvious that he had an affinity for sitar and people began to take notice. Soon he was playing more concerts on sitar than guitar. Like George Harrison before him (one of Prosad’s musical mentors), he went from rock music to Indian music. “I feel like I am picking up where he left off. He was such an inspiration to me. I hope that one day I will be able to take the East-West fusion of Indian and Western music to a whole new level, to a place where it has never gone before”.

Inspired by George Harrison, and drawing from his studies in Western Classical and Jazz music, Prosad began fusing Eastern and Western traditions into a new style that he calls “Trance-Sitar”.

Learning from the Masters

Prosad’s first sitar teacher was Shambhu Das, a life long student of Pandit Ravi Shankar. It was an amazing experience to study with Mr. Das as he had taught sitar to George Harrison while the Beatles were in India in the late 1960’s. Prosad later went on to study classical sitar with the great sitarist Ustad Irshad Khan. Mr. Khan’s lineage is known as the “Imdad Khani Etawa Gharana,” and dates back 400 years. Ustad Irshad Khan’s ancestors played for the ancient kings of India and are credited with pioneering the modern style of sitar playing accepted widely today.

Currently, Prosad is studying sitar and from his spiritual teacher, Maestro Tulshi Sen. Learning music from this true spiritual master has changed his perception of sound and music forever. He is now seeking to create music that will not be only for the purpose of entertainment, but will also uplift and raise the consciousness of the listener.

Playing Live

Prosad is a multi-instrumentalist and world music specialist. He expertly plays the sitar while simultaneously accompanying himself on the didgeridoo (a traditional aboriginal drone instrument from Australia). He sings and plays along to beats which he has produced in his own studio while using a loop station to layer his voice into thick chanting harmonies. He also uses the loop machine to create amazing effects with keyboard and didgeridoo drones while layering haunting melodies of Bansuri (bamboo flute from India) over top. The overall effect takes the feeling and spirit of a temple and mixes it with the powerful energy of a rock concert. The “good vibes” are almost tangible as the room heats up and the dance floor stays packed.

Passion for Music

Prosad has been uncompromising in his passionate quest to be a musician. He has faced many obstacles to his dream, but has refused to give up and is now finding true success. He has remained completely independent and created his own music career, step by step from the ground up. Now, with a Hollywood movie credit to his name and a schedule that includes playing live 3 to 4 nights a week, his life is filled completely with his passion for creating and performing music.

Prosad has spent the last few years dividing his time between writing and recording new music and travelling the globe in search of new inspiration. His travels have taken him throughout India, Australia, Japan, Europe and South East Asia. Learning ancient world instruments and incorporating them into modern music is his passion. He continues to live and compose in Toronto while spending as much time as possible performing and travelling throughout the world.

Photo by Catherine Farquharson