$20 admission / $10 students & seniors / 2pm doors / seated & standing
Captivating Swaras returns to the lilypad for our second installment on September 12 with performances from two local, young Hindustani musicians!
Banaras-born singer/pianist and composer Raghav Kathuria combines elements of jazz, Hindustani music, and cultural traditions with deep emotional resonance. Guided by melodic curiosity and natural awareness, he shapes musical stories that emerge through both intentional exploration and unexpected discovery. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, he actively performs in the Greater Boston area with his group and is currently working on his debut EP, set to release early next year.
Ishaan Leonard Rao is an Indo-Dutch pianist and composer from New Delhi, currently based in Boston. He is a Sony Music Global Scholar, a recent honors graduate from Berklee College of Music, and is about to begin his Master's in Music at the New England Conservatory in Contemporary Musical Arts. Ranging from intricate compositions and commanding virtuosity to a completely unique improvisational language, his music draws on a deep rootedness in Indian classical music and classical piano repertoire, as well as a familiarity with the contemporary global music landscape.
Born in 2004 to world-renowned Indian classical musicians Shubhendra Rao and Saskia Rao-de Haas, he began learning sitar and cello at age three, started piano at six, and has performed regularly since the age of eleven. Since then, he has given solo and group performances in India and around the world, in venues such as the Theater Odylo Costa Filha in Rio de Janeiro, the 2021 India-EU Global Summit, the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre, and the Desert Song Festival in Alice Springs, Australia, among others. His debut album, Ishaan, was up for nomination at the 2025 Grammy Awards, and he is currently working on a second full-length album of original music.
Alongside his solo work, Ishaan is an avid cross-cultural collaborator. He is part of the Rao Trio with his parents, Shubhendra Rao and Saskia Rao-de Haas, with whom he has performed all over the world; their single Triveni was also up for nomination at the 2025 Grammy Awards. His contemporary Indian trio project, Rasiya, alongside Ishaan Ghosh and Yadnesh Raikar, recently completed its debut India tour in January 2026. He has also learned from and recorded with legendary oud maestro Simon Shaheen.
A trusted voice in international cultural diplomacy, he has been invited to present high-profile recitals for ministries of culture, international diplomatic delegations, and global embassies. His work seamlessly weaves diverse global influences, including jazz, Arabic scales, and Klezmer, into a cohesive and unique framework. Combining virtuosic technique with a deep reverence for musical lineage, Ishaan continues to expand the boundaries of tradition and works to create a musical world he feels at home in.
