We are looking for a new Talent Development Coordinator to join the Asian Arts Agency team and work alongside the Director in developing and building on existing our artist support programmes (Breaking Barriers and Emerge) creating new opportunities for South Asian musicians to develop their work and careers in the music sector/industry and widening the Agency’s reach.
You will work with musicians at different stages in their careers, including musicians of international standing and emerging musicians stepping out on careers in the music industry. You will work with leading music sector bodies, venues and recording studios and with imaginative and inspiring individuals. A strong commitment to creative diversity is essential as is a sound understanding of barriers South Asian musicians face; knowledge of how the live music circuit operate would be valuable. This is a rewarding and exciting opportunity for a dynamic individual with energy, drive, and imagination.
If you are committed to supporting UK-based South Asian musicians to develop their careers, and have a solid background in running and developing arts support projects including budgeting and administering programmes, this could be the role for you!
This is a southwest England-based position; it can be delivered remotely with weekly visits to the Agency’s Bristol office. Please refer to the full job description for further details.
See below for the full job spec and the supporting application form. Please ensure you read both fully before applying.
HOW TO APPLY Please send completed applications to jobs<at>asianartsagency.co.uk with the following information:
Cover Letter, detailing your suitability for the role.
CV
Application Summary Form and Equal Opportunities Monitoring form, including contact details of two referees, with email addresses and phone numbers (including a recent employer if appropriate).
Closing date for applications: Tuesday 15 September 9:30am Please submit your application as soon as possible as candidates shortlisted early may be interviewed prior to the closing date.
If you have any questions about the role, please email jobs<at>asianartsagency.co.uk
In early 2026, Asian Arts Agency proudly commissioned Shradhanjali, a one-of-a-kind musical tribute celebrating the life and legacy of the late Ustad Zakir Hussain—one of the greatest musicians of our time. His passing in 2024 was felt across the world, leaving an immeasurable legacy that continues to shape generations of artists and audiences alike.
Asian Arts Agency commissions ambitious new work that celebrates cultural heritage, supports artists and brings extraordinary live experiences to audiences across the UK.
Having had the privilege of working with Zakir ji over many years, this commission was deeply personal. It was an opportunity to honour not only an extraordinary musician, but a generous collaborator, mentor and creative force whose influence transcended musical traditions and international boundaries.
Conceived through conversations between Asian Arts Agency Director Jaswinder Singh and the visionary artist Talvin Singh OBE, Shradhanjali brought together an exceptional collective of musicians for an evening of reflection, remembrance and musical exploration. Rather than recreating the past, the performance embodied the spirit of Zakir ji’s artistry—celebrating improvisation, collaboration and the joy of creating music together.
The evening opened with reflections from Jaswinder Singh, remembering an artist whose talent comes along only once in a lifetime. We were also honoured to welcome Zakir Hussain’s brother-in-law, Mr. Ayub, who joined Talvin Singh on stage to share personal memories and celebrate the remarkable life behind the music.
The first half featured an intimate improvised dialogue between Talvin Singh on tabla and Thomas Rogerson on piano. Delicate, immersive and deeply moving, their performance captured the openness and curiosity that defined Zakir ji’s musical approach.
In the second half, Talvin Singh was joined by internationally acclaimed drummer Marcus Gilmore, Anantha R. Krishnan on mridangam and Satin Singh on Latin percussion. Together, they created an exhilarating performance that celebrated rhythm, improvisation and musical conversation—the universal language that Zakir Hussain championed throughout his life.
The evening concluded with a standing ovation, reflecting the profound connection between the artists, the audience and the enduring legacy of a musician whose work continues to inspire people across the world.
Why This Commission Matters
At Asian Arts Agency, we believe commissioning new work is one of the most powerful ways to celebrate artistic heritage while shaping the future.
Projects like Shradhanjali are ambitious. They require vision, partnership and investment, and they often carry creative and financial risk. Yet they are essential. They create opportunities for artists to collaborate between traditions, preserve and reinterpret cultural heritage, and offer audiences unique experiences that would not exist otherwise.
As an arts charity, this is at the heart of what we do. We commission new work because we believe culture should be living, evolving and accessible. We invest in artists because we know their work has the power to connect communities, spark dialogue and inspire future generations. We fundraise in order to make these pieces happen.
We are incredibly proud to have commissioned Shradhanjali as part of our third year of festival partnership with Southbank Centre, helping to bring this remarkable tribute to life.
Our heartfelt thanks go to Zakir ji’s family, Talvin Singh and the extraordinary musicians who shared their artistry so generously, our partners at Southbank Centre, our supporters and funders, our dedicated team, and everyone who joined us for this unforgettable evening.
Together, we honoured an extraordinary life through the universal language of music—and reaffirmed why supporting bold artistic ambition continues to matter.
Help Us Create the Next Extraordinary Moment
Shradhanjali was only possible because of the generosity of our supporters, partners and funders.
Every donation to Asian Arts Agency helps us commission bold new work, nurture artists, celebrate cultural heritage and bring world-class performances to audiences across the UK. It enables us to take creative risks, support emerging talent alongside internationally renowned artists, and create experiences that inspire, connect and leave a lasting legacy.
If you believe in the power of the arts to bring people together, preserve culture and spark new conversations, we’d love you to be part of our journey.
Support our work today and help us commission the next generation of unforgettable artistic experiences.
The packed hall awaits the concert start
Jaswinder Singh, Asian Arts Agecny’s director, on stage with Mr Ayub, Zakir Hussain’s brother-in-law, sharing memories with the audience
The four performers on stage
The artists take a bow; L-R, Marcus Gilmore, Talvin Singh, Anantha R Krishnan, Satin Singh.
We are working with Southbank Centre for the third consecutive year on the acclaimed ‘South Asian Sounds’ series. Our programme features concerts from 𝗥𝗮𝗴𝗵𝘂 𝗗𝗶𝘅𝗶𝘁, alongside a special homage to Zakir Hussain led by 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗵.
RAGHU DIXIT Friday 3 July, Queen Elizabeth Hall One of India’s most exciting and globally loved live performers, blending Indian folk roots with modern, genre-crossing sounds, Raghu Dixit’s music is joyful, uplifting, and made to be felt—whether you know every lyric or you’re hearing it for the first time.
Raghu Dixit said: “I’m so excited to perform at South Asian Sounds this year. The festival has been curated with much care and love by Asian Arts Agency and I can’t wait to return to the wonderful Southbank Centre, of which I have so many memories. London has always embraced our music with so much love and was one of the first champions of my work, and I’m really looking forward to returning – singing, sharing, and celebrating together once again. I’ll be bringing a lot of new material this time – songs from my new album, some independent singles and a lot more. Please be there with your entire family!”
Talvin Singh presents an extraordinary evening of rhythm, improvisation, and global musical dialogue. Shradhanjali honours the enduring legacy of the legendary tabla maestro Zakir Hussain – the pioneering force who, since the 1990s, brought together the world’s finest percussionists in a spirit of collaboration, virtuosity, and innovation, under the title Masters of Percussion.
Talvin Singh said: ”My deepest gratitude to Asian Arts Agency for gracing me for this opportunity to pay a tribute to the most influential musicians of our world of music. We are very much looking forward to bringing this personal homage to Ustad Zakir Hussain, Shradanjali, to London this summer at the Southbank Centre.”
We are pleased to announce a new partnership with Soumik Datta Arts for the upcoming UK concerts featuring Sarod virtuoso Pandit Prattyush Banerjee.
With a dedicated focus on supporting projects across the arts and championing contemporary culture, the charity’s vision aligns closely with our own. We look forward to working collaboratively with another Southwest-based South Asian music organisation, and fellow Arts Council England NPO, as the tour arrives in Portsmouth.
This milestone concert represents an important moment for the region’s cultural landscape and underscores the Asian Arts Agency’s commitment to broadening the reach of South Asian music across the Southwest and in the UK.
We’re delighted also to announce a partnership with Portsmouth-based community group, Indian Progressive Arts, especially Vinod Desai and Jatin Patel, to help reach out to the local communities, to support bringing this project to Portsmouth.
📍PORTSMOUTH Central Library
📅 Saturday 28 March
🎟 via our website here
A great way to start 2026, with a visit to the Real World Studios, near Bath, as part of our Emerge 2 talent development programme, with this being the second iteration.
We were joined by the outstanding South Asian emerging musicians who have been with us for several months, learning new skills to help develop and sustain their music careers.
Emerge 2 kicked off in 2025 with a series of online sessions around music-sector knowledge, and the programme concluded with this in-person experience at Real World Studios, giving artists the opportunity to immerse themselves in a world-class creative environment.
Across the day, participants explored key aspects of the music industry, from copyright and recording techniques to marketing and career development but, above all, had the chance to experience the unique energy of a studio space where extraordinary music has been created for decades, to inspire them to take their music making and ambitions to the next stage.
A huge thank you to the entire Real World Studios team, and especially Amanda, for supporting the session and generously sharing their expertise. Our thanks also to the wider team at Real World for their time, insight, and invaluable knowledge.
We’ll be launching Emerge 3 later this year, offering similar opportunities for emerging South Asian musicians , so watch this space.
The artists selected for our 2025 cohort were:
Aayushi Jain – a folk singer-songwriter from Birmingham, who writes songs which blend elements from her Indian heritage with abstract symbolism to evoke a soft hypnotic atmosphere. @aayushimusic
Ekta Rana – a London-based singer, songwriter, and composer who sings both Indian classical and modern music, including Bollywood, ghazals, and bhajans.@ektarana.singer
Lemona Chanda – a vocalist who sings light forms of music including thumri, ghazal, devotional, folk as well as Bengali music such as Rabindra Sangeet and Nazrul Geeti.@lemonachanda
Muhammad Hasnain Ali – a digital media producer specializing in vocal mixing, background music composition, and visual content creation.@prod_has
Narotam Horn – a composer and pianist, whose unique contemporary classical style is infused with the improvisational spirit and storytelling of Bengali folk music.@narotamhorn
Dr Pavithra Prathab– a Veena artist with fluency both in Carnatic and Western classical forms of music.@paviprathab
Shivani Sen – a multi-disciplinary artist, singer-songwriter, poet and composer who currently focuses on vilambit khyal, a deep and meditative form of classical music.@shivanisenmusic
Tejal Pankhania – player of sitar and surbahar, who has immersed herself in the rigorous study of Indian classical music, a foundation of profound taalim, developing a deep connection with the spiritual and meditative dimensions of her art. @tejalpankhania
Please show these amazing talents your support by following them on social media, listening to their music, and buying their work.
Asian Arts Agency is a PRS Foundation Talent Development Network Partner, supported by PPL UK.
We are looking for a new Marketing Coordinator to assist with the marketing and promotional activity of our events.
If you have a background in live music/arts touring, festivals or events and enjoy working with musicians and other professionals presenting live performances, this offers you an exciting opportunity to work in a vibrant and diverse arts organisation working across England and internationally with major artists and venues.
This role requires a candidate who is confident at creating content, from written to video, for various platforms. Central to this role is supporting the Marketing Manager on delivering the overall marketing programme, including promoting events, handling ticketing and artist/venue liaison – so great reporting and organisational skills are also key.
If you’ve got experience helping to deliver effective strategic & event marketing & communications plans, and ideally some experience of working within South Asian music/arts communities, or similar we’d love to hear from you.
This is a south west England-based position, with a minimum two days per week in person at the Agency’s Bristol office. Please refer to the full job description for further details.
See the links below for the full job spec and the supporting application form. Please ensure you read both fully before applying.
How To Apply Please send completed applications to jobs <at> asianartsagency.co.uk with the following information:
Cover Letter, detailing your suitability for the role.
C.V.
Application Summary Form and Equal Opportunities Monitoring form
Closing date for applications: Monday 9 February 2026, 9am.
Please submit your application as soon as possible as candidates shortlisted early may be interviewed prior to the closing date.
If you have any questions about this role, please email jobs <at> asianartsagency.co.uk
2025 has been an unforgettable year for all of us at Asian Arts Agency 🎉
From sold-out shows in Bristol and across the UK, plus European festival stages, to running our second Emerge talent development programme for young artists — it’s been full of creativity, growth and connection.
We were also proud to deliver a hugely successful showcase at WOMEX, our New Sounds Festival in Bristol, and a completely packed-out show at the EFG London Jazz Festival 🙌
As we say goodbye to 2025, we’re already buzzing about what’s coming next. We have a talent development session at Real World Studios in January, Roopa Panesar plays New York, and UK shows on sale include Shashank Subramanyam, Prattyush Banerjee and Roopa Panesar, with many more exciting announcements coming soon.
A massive thank you to our incredible community — artists, funders, audiences, donors and friends. Your support means everything to us ❤️
Here’s to an even bigger year ahead!
South Asian Music. Global Impact. Based in Bristol. Working Worldwide.
We’re delighted to announce New Sounds Festival 2025; Bristol’s celebration of South Asian music will feature live performances, DJs and much more; a showcase of the best in emerging and established talent, over two weekends in November.
On Sunday 2 November, St George’s Bristol hosts two exceptional music concerts featuring some of the most exciting South Asian artists in the UK; Sarathy Korwar & Roopa Panesar.
These two performances are the result of music commissions by Asian Arts Agency over the past few years, during which both Roopa and Sarathy were offered residencies at Real World Studios to create and record new music. We are now delighted to host and present their completed projects at this year’s New Sounds Festival.
Asian Arts Agency Director, Jaswinder Singh said “We are delighted to bring back the New Sounds Festival to Bristol this year, featuring multiple performances by leading British South Asian artists across various venues in the city. The festival will showcase newly commissioned work by the Asian Arts Agency and launch a brand-new music series, Bhangra Sounds, with more events planned for the future.”
Roopa Panesar The celebrated sitar player takes to the stage for an afternoon of delightful Indo-jazz fusion with her ATMA project, following her recent jam-packed concerts at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, and Diwali celebration at Leicester Cathedral.
“One of the most important musicians to have emerged in the British Asian diaspora over the past few years. She expresses a profound sense of calmness laced with an inexplicable exhilaration.” (⭐⭐⭐⭐ Songlines)
Embracing Indian classical as well as jazz and Western classical music, Roopa leaves audiences captivated; she was invited to perform at the VJ75 memorial in the presence of HRH The Prince of Wales and has also collaborated with Mercury Prize winner Talvin Singh. ______________________
Sarathy Korwar Later the same evening, genre-breaking drummer, producer and composer Sarathy Korwar presents the UK premiere of his forthcoming album – the first release on his own new label – made up entirely of live drums, drum-triggered electronics and human voices.
“His rhythmically intense, entrancing vision adds a whole new spin to the Indo-jazz continuum.” (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ MOJO)
For this special launch show, the band will comprise multiple drummers and percussionists, playing an expansive version of the album. Expect hypnotic and trance-inducing cyclical drum patterns – futuristic folk music that draws from South Asian temple procession rituals, jazz percussion ensembles and contemporary minimalism.
________________________
On 14 November, we are excited to launch our new music series Bhangra Sounds at the Bristol Beacon, celebrating the rich and vibrant Bhangra culture; an integral part of contemporary and global South Asian music. This series will showcase the breadth of the genre’s artists, including live music, dancers, DJs, and much more.
RSVP Bristol’s longest-standing Bhangra band will set the space alight with their high-energy unique sound fusion & magnetic stage presence. Every show comes with an introduction to Bhangra dance – everyone’s included with the emphasis on partying Punjabi style; this is the ultimate celebratory Indian music. “Combining exhilarating rhythms, virtuoso vocals and infectious dance movements, the contagious sounds grab the audience and never let go.” (4barsrest.com)
Eternal Taal The all-female group bring the vibrant sounds of the dhol and the colourful spirit of Punjabi dance to the stage. The renowned team of talented Bhangra artists, led by award-winning Parv Kaur are successfully breaking the mould of the male-dominated industry. Known for their electrifying performances and crowd-engaging style, Eternal Taal don’t just perform – they will get audiences moving, clapping, and dancing along.
Indian Man The Bristol-based DJ and producer takes his Punjabi Indian roots and blends them into a melting pot of melodic magic by merging the music of his childhood with UK dub, garage and jungle, drawing club and underground electronic influences into his rapidly evolving sound. Snapped up by Peter Gabriel’s RealWorld Recordings for his debut album, and a regular at WOMAD festivals across the world, Indian Man’s time on the decks will keep the party jumping.
We are looking for a new Project Coordinator to join the Asian Arts Agency team and assist with the production and delivery of our events. With an exciting line-up of events and music festivals each year, in this role you will be instrumental in the delivery and coordination of innovative programmes and the efficient management of our live music touring and events programme and partnerships with festivals, venues, and artists.
If you have a strong background in overseeing and executing live arts and music events, working with venues, and excel at event budgeting and tour administration, this could be the role for you!
This is a southwest England-based position, with a minimum two days per week in person at the Agency’s Bristol office. Please refer to the full job description for further details.
See below for the full job spec and the supporting application form. Please ensure you read both fully before applying.
Please send completed applications to jobs <at> asianartsagency.co.uk with the following information:
Cover Letter, detailing your suitability for the role.
C.V.
Application Summary Form and Equal Opportunities Monitoring form including contact details of two referees, with email addresses and phone numbers (including a recent employer if appropriate).
Closing date for application: Thursday 7 August, 9.30am Please submit your application as soon as possible as candidates shortlisted early maybe interviewed prior to the closing date.
If you have any questions about the role, please email jobs <at> asianartsagency.co.uk
We’re delighted to be invited by WOMEX to present Malkit Singh/Golden Star as part of this year’s official music showcase in Tampere, Finland.
At Asian Arts Agency, our international work is rooted in championing South Asian music on global stages – creating opportunities for artists to perform at major showcases, festivals, and venues worldwide and increase visibility for diverse voices. This showcase with Malkit Singh, hailed as the King of Bhangra and one of the most iconic voices in the genre – offers programmers, curators and presenters a chance to experience the full energy and depth of live Bhangra music.
We look forward to connecting and building new collaborations with the international music community.
Malkit Singh Golden Star is supported by PRS Foundation’s International Showcase Fund, which is run by PRS Foundation in partnership with Department of Business and Trade (BAT), British Underground, Arts Council England, British Council, The Musicians’ Union (MU), PPL, Creative Scotland, Wales Arts International and Arts Council of Northern Ireland.
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