Born into a family of renowned Indian classical artists, Kasturi Mishra, has emerged as one of India’s most enthralling and expressive Kathak dancers in her generation. Kasturi began her training under the guidance of her father Pt. Bachan Lal Mishra, himself a distinguished Kathak artist and a learned dance guru of India.
Trained in both major schools of Kathak, Kasturi skilfully exemplifies the elegant and soft components of the Lucknow school as well as the vibrant and commanding rhythms of the Jaipur school. Her training also focused on the traditional Kathak solo which requires the dancer to perform without any prior rehearsal with instrumentalists and percussionists and to improvise rhythms, compositions, and storytelling.
Throughout her dance career Kasturi has especially been influenced and inspired by her Guru and Uncle, Pt. Chitresh Das, a master and virtuosic performer of classical Kathak dance. A committed guru, Pt. Das has repeatedly inspired the world of Kathak with his innovations within this traditional art form. Since moving to Canada in 2007, Kasturi has performed solo concerts to sold out audiences in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Montreal and Halifax.
Ravi began his studies in Tabla with Smt. Hem Mathur in 1993, at the India School of Dance Music and Theatre in Winnipeg, Canada. An exceptional classical vocalist and graduate of the Bhatkande School of Music, Smt. Mathur trained Ravi in the complex systems of taals, accompaniment, and composition solidifying within Ravi a firm foundational knowledge of the Tabla.
In 1999 he graduated with the equivalent of a 3-year Bachelor’s in Music specializing in the Tabla from the India School of Dance, Music and Theatre, and took on the role of teacher, and music department representative within that organization
In 2003 Ravi Singh was awarded the Senior Arts Fellowship from the Shastri-Indo Canadian Institute to study in India. Ravi began his studies in India under the guidance of famed tabla maestro, Pandit Kumar Bose. A living legend, Pt. Bose is one of the most dynamic and influential classical Tabla players of today. The standard torch bearer for the Benaras tabla Gharana, Pt. Bose was trained under the great Benaras Maestro, Pt. Kishen Maharaj.
