Aritmija & Sabiha Khan & Vinayak Netke (IND, SLO)

The international music project Aritmija feat. Sabiha Khan and Vinayak Netke started in the summer of 2016 when the guitar duo Aritmija joined forces with world-class artists from Mumbai, India – vocalist Sabiha Khan and Vinayaka Netkeja, a virtuoso of the Indian percussion instrument tabla.

What started as a one-off gig, which immediately exceeded the expectations commonly associated with a first musical get-together, soon turned into a permanent musical connection between Slovenian and Indian artists and led to more than 50 concerts in India and Europe. The artists play mostly original songs from the world music genre, mixed with elements of Balkan folk music, rock, flamenco, classical music, jazz, and the rich music heritage of India. The energetic yet refined sound of their Indian counterparts perfectly complement Aritmija’s distinguishable musical expression, creating an eponymous musical fusion.

In 2017, the band were invited to take what proved to be a very successful tour of India and a summer tour across Slovenia (they appeared, among other venues, in eight summer festivals), all while recording their first joint album. In January 2018, they embarked on a second successful Indian tour (appearing in the states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan), followed by a European tour (Switzerland, France, Austria). In December 2018, they were invited to yet another well-publicized tour across India. In summer 2019, they intend to take the next major tour in their project.

The guitar duo Aritmija, consisting of musicians and composers Tilen Stepišnik and Šemsudin Dino Džopa, was formed in 2002. During their seventeen years of appearing as a duo, and occasionally appearing in an extended version with Žiga Šercer on percussion and Vasilij Centrih on violin, as well as other musicians on occasion, Aritmija appeared in over 600(!) concerts (Slovenia, Switzerland, Germany, France, England, Austria, Italy, India, Uzbekistan) and released 3 albums. The duo play original songs and various covers on which they imprint their distinct style. The music they play can best be described as world music. In their case, this means a mixture of mostly Balkan folk music, flamenco, rock, and jazz. During their long-standing on-stage career, Aritmija played with a vast number of excellent artists such as Bojan Cvetrežnik, Vasko Atanasovski, Prismojeni profesorji bluesa, Terrafolk & Simbolični orkester, Ljuben Dimkaroski and vocal ensemble Pella, Miloš Simić and others.

Sabiha Khan is an Indian vocalist who has devoted over twenty years of her career to perfecting the techniques of Indian classical and traditional singing. As a multitalented vocalist, she recorded various film music, ad jingles, music for documentaries, and appeared live on stage in various world festivals.  

Vinayak Netke is an Indian percussionist, master of the Indian tabla, world and film music composer and music arranger. He appeared in gigs all across the world, from Japan to Europe, playing with artists such as the famous Indian violinist dr. L. Subramaniam, French guitar player Titi Robin, German-Indian pianist and composer Jarry Singla and many more.

Aritmija & Sabiha Khan & Vinayak Netke

• Tilen Stepišnik, classical and acoustic guitar
• Šemsudin Dino Džopa, classical and acoustic guitar
• Sabiha Khan, vocal
• Vinayak Netke, tabla
• Vasilij Centrih, violin