Music: East meets West

Santoor player Rahul Sharma’s traditional symphonies and international musician Eric Mouquet’s (Deep Forest) electronica have combined to create unique fusion music. The album Deep India features folk melodies with the Deep Forest treatment. Says Eric, “I always wanted to create a project with Indian music. When I heard Rahul’s santoor, I was sure his music could fit with mine.” For Rahul, who has in the past successfully collaborated with pianist Richard Clayderman and saxophonist Kenny G, the idea was tempting. “Deep Forest has a very distinct sound. I loved their album Boheme for which they won a Grammy.”  

It took about six-seven months to work on the album as the duo was travelling for their respective concerts. “It took time to source out the right kind of folk that I’ve wanted from all over India and then add my compositions to it. Deep Forest had to live my tunes for a while, understand the music and then work their magic on the sound design,” adds Rahul.

Eric says that some tracks came very quickly while others took a longer time. “Each song is a new adventure, and as I try to be creative, it’s an everyday challenge,” explains Eric, who will soon be in India to promote the album.