Indian, Classical, Vocal, Voice, Training, Khayal, Thumri, Dadr | Van Nuys, California

Diotima Mallick (North Indian Classical Vocalist) Diotima Mallick is an accomplished young Hindustani Classical Singer living in Los Angeles, California. Originally from Kolkata, India, she developed a longing for music at a tender age, when she was first introduced to music by her first music teacher, Sri Anil Sur. Later she received her initial training in Classical and other forms of traditional Indian music from Srimati Aditi Bhattacharyya, a noted classical vocalist belonging to Kotali gharana (disciple of Pandit Manas chakraborty) and also one of the finest Nazrul Geeti artists from kolkata (student of Sri Mananbendra Mukhopadhyay) for more than a decade. At present she is taking her advanced Talim in Khayal under the tutelage of the distinguished and revered guru Vidushi Dr. Tapasi Ghosh, a torchbearer of Agra Gharana (disciple of illustrious sitarist, vocalist, composer and Guru Acharya Pandit Dhrubatara Joshi ji) and Thumri-Dadra from Smt. Abanti Bhattacharya, an eminent Bengali vocalist of Purab-ang gayaki (Benaras), student of Vidushi Dalia Routh and Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty. A first class holder in MA degree in Music from Rabindra Bharati University, Diotima has also passed the Sangeet Prabhakar examination from Prayag Sangeet Samiti with flying colors. She has performed at several prestigious musical concerts in India. Her expertise lies in intricate patterns of vistars, bol baat and taankari in various ragas and raginis adhering to the Agra Gayaki. As an artist she has also blended some exclusive features and stylistic aspects of other gharanas such as Kotali, Patiala, Jaipur into her Agra style of singing. Through her years of training and practice she has mastered the art of improvising the “Sur” in a particular raga with the help of musical notes, phrases and certain motifs while remaining inside the melodic framework created by the great classical maestros. Moreover, she has obtained Talims (teachings) of many rare Ragas from her gurus and she can sing them effortlessly. Apart from Khayal, Thumri,Tappa and other semi-classical genres of music, Diotima is also an expert in Nazrul-Geeti, Bangla Ragashroyee and Raga pradhan songs, Golden era Bengali Music as well as Rabindrasangeet. She is very passionate about learning Indian Classical music and expressing her thoughts and emotions through her Gayaki. She has over ten years of experience as a vocal music teacher, instructing more than 30 young students and 20 adults. Her calm and caring personality allows her to be an effective and likable teacher. She begins with basic vocal training, i.e. the proper method of voice throwing, understanding of notes (Swar and Shrutis), practicing of vocal ornaments, melody and rhythm. She then follows up by introducing her students with the characteristic nuances of North Indian Classical music that includes the knowledge of various Ragas, Talas and Khayal Gayaki. She also teaches Thumri, Dadra, Bhajan, Tappa and other semi-classical genres of North Indian Classical music as well as various types of Bengali songs including Nazrul Geeti and Rabindrasangeet. Diotima has taught students from various age groups, starting from six year olds and up to advanced Masters level (in classical music) students. Some of her senior students have obtained fame as vocalists as they perform regularly on several prestigious concerts and in television shows. Some of them even secured gradation in All India Radio. She has also taught many elderly students who have faced problems with voice throwing and successfully managed to alleviate their problems, encouraged and inspired them to continue with their musical journey.