In his world premier performance of Samdhi Diasporic Connections, alto saxophonist and composer, Rudresh Mahanthappa creates jazz to express and celebrate his Indian-American identity. Rudresh has earned praise for his skillful integration of Indian musical concepts into his work. To create Samdhi: Diasporic Connections, Rudresh studied Carnatic (South Indian) classical music with legendary Indian musicians in Bangalore and Chennai including saxophonist Kadri Gopalnath and mridangamist Jaychandra Rao. Rudresh blends these musical traditions with electronic audio processing and drum programming as compositional devices and textures within a quintet framework.