Photo: William Ejam Maail

Four years ago, the Netherlands was gifted with live performances from master sitar player Anoushka Shankar and pioneer of the hang Manu Delago along with the 27-member string section of the Metropole Orkest under the direction of conductor Jules Buckley. We were lucky to be at one those enthralling performances at Le Guess Who? festival in Utrecht, experiencing a cinematic and divine set by two exceptional virtuosos and an incredible orchestra phenomenally conducted.

Now they are releasing a live album recorded during their run of shows in the Netherlands, featuring material taken from Shankar’s four solo albums – 2005’s Rise, 2013’s Traces of You, 2015’s Traveller and 2016’s Land of Gold. Entitled Between Us…, the upcoming album is out digitally on July 8th with a vinyl and CD edition arriving on September 16th through LEITER, the label founded by Nils Frahm and his manager Felix Grimm.

A truly collaborative album blending classical Indian music with contemporary sounds, Between Us… sees Shankar continue to work with other musicians. “I really feed off working creatively with others,” she explained. “Something turns on in collaboration, in chemistry, in connection. It can feel like a dance, like we’re in something together.”

Speaking about long time collaborator Manu Delago, Shankar says:

“He’s just so central to some of these pieces. I’ve played them without him, but my favourite way to play them is with him. I feel a new element of my sitar come alive in that sound vibration that happens between our two instruments, like there’s one little wave I can only play with him. It feels utterly magical.”

Along with the album news, Shankar has unveiled the first spellbinding single, ‘Land of Gold’. Listen to it below.

For another taste of what’s on offer revisit the beguiling performance of Anoushka Shankar & Manu Delago with Metropole Orkest Strings at Le Guess Who?’s 2018 edition, directed by Nick Helderman.