Omkar Dadarkar (Hindustani Vocal) was born in Mumbai and initiated into musical training by his parents, both being Marathi Natya-Sangeet performers. He took his initial training under Dr. Ram Deshpande and received a scholarship from C.C.R.T.(New Delhi). As the nephew and
Shishya of the legendary vocalist Padmashree Manik Verma,
Omkar was fortunate to get taleem from her. After that he
took training from Pt.Yashwantbua Joshi of Gwalior Gharana
under the Guru-shishya Parampara scheme of the Dadar-Matunga
Cultural Centre. Omkar was selected as scholar by I.T.C. Sangeet
Research Academy in 1999 and he underwent rigorous training
under the tutelage of guru Pt.Ulhas Kashalkar. He successfully
completed his six years training in the Academy with A+ grade.
He trained in Light Classical forms under Vidushi Girija Devi
and Srinivas Khale. He also completed Sangeet Alankar from
Gandharv Mahavidyalaya and graduated in Marathi Literature and History. Omkar has performed to great acclaim all over India and in venues in USA, UK, Canada, Bangladesh and Nepal.
Omkar is recognized as promising up-and-coming talent and has won
the Vidyasagar Award and the prestigious “Shanmukhananda Hall-Mumbai-Sangeet Shiromani”award. He is the first recipient of the“Chaturanga Sangeet Shishyavrutti Award” given by Chaturanga Pratishthan in collaboration with Mhaiskar Foundation,Mumbai. Omkar was awarded by Sangeet Natak Academy and received the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar in 2009. He is presently working at I.T.C.Sangeet Research Academy Kolkata as a Guru.
Having imbibed lessons in music since childhood, Siddesh Bicholkar (Harmonium) has been privileged to receive guidance from his first Guru, Shri Sharad Mathkar in Goa and later, under the tutelage of Pt. Tulsidas Borkar, renowned Harmonium exponent and Guru. The difficult and lesser known art of Jaltarang was taken up by Siddhesh with inspiration from Shri Sharad Mathkar, who personally crafted his first set of Jaltarang apparatus. Siddhesh gained valuable knowledge about Instrumental recitals from Pt. Tulsidas Borkar, enabling him to present Jaltarang recitals, which are relatively rare in Indian Classical Music. He has been the recipient of many eminent music scholarships including accolades by the Govt.of India and its H.R.D. Ministry and many other awards to add to his long list of achievements. He is presently employed as a classical music teacher at Sharda Sangeet Vidyalaya, Mumbai.
Sanjay Deshpande (Tabla) hails from Pune. He was born into a musical family and was introduced to Tabla by Late Pt. Sabade at Pune Bharat Gayan Samaj. He later took training from the renowned Tabla artist Pt. Suresh Talwalkar of Delhi-Farookabad Gharana, in a Guru Shishya Parampara. He also had the privilege of understanding the beauty of Punjab Gharana under the guidance of renowned Tabla maestro Ustad. Alla Rakha Khan Saheb. He is presently being guided by Shri. Yogesh Samsi and Pt. Vivek Joshi. Sanjay is the recipient of the Ahmedjaan Thirakwaa Scholarship for Solo Performance. He has accompanied renowned artists like Smt. Vasundhara Komkali, Pt. Ulhas Kashalkar, Pt. Smt. Malini Rajurkar, Pt. Jasraj, Dr. Prabha Atre, Pt. Dinkar Kaikini, Dr. Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande, Smt. Veena Sahasrabudhe and many others. He has performed at major conferences such as Sawai Gandharwa Music Festival Pune, Paluskar Smarak Conference and many others. He has toured in the USA, UK, UAE, Canada, and several other countries. He has also participated in the World Vocal Festival in Sweden. He is empaneled as a Guru at the Lalit Kala Kendra, University of Pune. He has number of recordings released in his name. His fusion album “Wind From Ayuta” with Korean musicians won the Best Album Award of the Year in 2002 in South Korea.