Kamala Sankaram will talk about Indian music (the raga system, taal, and others) and non-Western singing (including Indian, Pakistani, and Bulgarian traditions). Kamala will demonstrate each style of music and then talk about how they are being used in the opera she is writing at the Hermitage. The evening will include hearing a recording of a scene from the new opera. Sharing the stage with Kamala, will be her Librettist Susan Yankowitz.