by Bruno Deschênes
Originally, the Indian santoor (a hammered dulcimer, known in Eastern Europe as the cymbalom) was not part of the Indian classical instruments, such as the cither, sarangi, bansuri, and other noble instruments. Shivkumar Sharma modified it, enlarged it, added new strings, including developing new techniques, and showing a talent and a mastery of the instrument never seen before in India. The santoor has been legitimized and thus raised to the same rank as the other classical instruments. Sharma has been able to show that the santoor has a versatility and an expressive quality unforeseen before; this is due to the modifications he brought to the instruments. He is accompanied on this CD by none other than Zakir Hussain, one of today's greatest tabla players. Simple sublime!