Residency Artist - Music

Utpola Borah, Ph.D. and Hans Utter, Ph.D.

652 E Jeffrey Place
Columbus, Ohio  43214
Phone: (614) 447-9164
Alt. Phone: (614) 432-3863
Email: utpola@gmail.com OR hans@hansutter.com

We are performers and scholars of North Indian classical and folk music. Our goal is to share traditional Indian performing art forms and culture to students of all ages and background, and awaken a passion for creativity and self-expression in students. We involve participants directly in the music through age-appropriate stories, movements, singing, and play. Our residencies facilitate the learning goals of the Fine Arts Academic Content Standards, as well as Social Studies, Language Arts Academic Content Standards. We placed the music of India in broad historical and geographical context, connecting performances on a variety of musical instruments to show how this music has traveled and evolved over the centuries. Hand-on and active learning will give all students and opportunity for creativity, whether through musical instruments they are currently studying, learning new musical skills, through movement, recitation, or writing. Our teaching process can culminate in an ensemble performance, allowing participants to share their creativity with the community. Finally, we hope to convey the core values that are central to the music of India. We will customize our residencies for the particular needs of a school or community, and we are happy to work with any age group.

We look forward to sharing our work through performances, workshops, and lecture/demonstrations. Recent workshops and programs include an upcoming 2013 Ohio Dance Festival and Conference at Ballet Met, our second annual Indian Performing Arts workshop for children and young adults, and concert held in Worthington Ohio, our participation as judges and clinicians in the 29th annual Indian Music and Dance Competition held at the University of Baltimore, and a presentation on the healing power of music for cancer survivors at the James Cancer hospital. Our recent performance at Columbus' Lincoln Theater has received excellent reviews, and we are currently scheduling concerts in the United States, Asia, and Europe.

We have worked as professional musicians for over 20 years, and have performed in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland, New York City, Washington, Newfoundland, and throughout India. Utpola is an award-winning vocalist specializing in North Indian classical music, devotional songs, and the regional folk songs of India. She has studied extensively with several of India's most accomplished musicians. Since her childhood, she has performed as a government-certified artist on All India Radio and on national television. She holds a Ph.D. in music from Delhi University, and has been recognized as one of the leading scholars of music and dance of Assam. Currently she is working as a performer and educator, and a post-doctoral research fellow at the "Advancing Interdisciplinary Research in Singing" project at the University of Prince Edward Island, Canada.

Hans Utter is multi-instrumentalist, ethnomusicologist and educator. Since 1993, he has studied sitar and tabla with India's top musicians, including Ustad Shujaat Khan. He holds a diploma in sitar from the Benares Hindu University, and a M.A. and Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from The Ohio State University. In his music, he aims communicate the depth and beauty of North Indian music through the sitar, and to illuminate the varied world of Indian art, culture, and history. In addition to the sitar, his research as an ethnomusicologist has led him into music of the Middle East and Central Asia. His background in jazz and Western Classical composition has been featured on the recent album from their ensemble Chakra, and he is currently working on a film soundtrack and a series of CD's featuring original compositions. He has taught music at The Ohio State University and Capital University.