Mandolin Sisters to perform in Delhi

The prodigious sisters, who play Carnatic classical music on the mandolin, are set to perform at Sunder Nursery, New Delhi today. (Source: Special Arrangements)

After performing at over 3,000 concerts worldwide, Sreeusha and Sireesha are excited to perform in Delhi, where they last performed eight years ago. “We like the people of Delhi because they enjoy the music deeply. It’s great to see that kind of reaction from people,” says Sireesha, 32.

Both sisters were five when they were first exposed to music through their father, Threemurthulu, who is a guitar player. “We used to play his guitar when he would go to work. After he saw our interest, he decided to teach us to play the guitar and eventually, also the mandolin,” says Sreeusha, 33.

After that, the sisters learned under Sri Rudraraju Subbaraju (who also taught U Srinivas) and Sengalipurn SV Ramamurthy. “Our father would take us to U Srinivas sir’s concerts and he inspired us to play the mandolin,” says Sireesha.

Playing Carnatic classical music on mandolin, which is a Western instrument, is a complex endevour. “We have to perfect the gamakas and ragas, and therefore, we spend a lot of time figuring out these nuances on the mandolin,” adds Sireesha.

While Srinivas popularised playing Carnatic classical music on the mandolin, the sisters list other artists like famed singers MS Subbalakshmi, Sudha Ragunathan, sarod exponent Amjad Ali Khan and pop king Michel Jackson as their favourites. “The music of AR Rahman and Illayraja is also close to our hearts and one day we would also like to produce music for the movies,” says Sreeusha.

The Mandolin Sisters are working on an album, which they say will be released next year. They keep releasing their renditions of popular tracks on their YouTube channel and continue to perform at music festivals worldover.

Tickets available at insider.in