Sangeet Mission & Vision

Sangeet provides a direct access to the diverse cultural tapestry of Los Angeles as a microcosm of the world.  We provide intimate experiences of traditional and contemporary artistry of the highest level through authentic and innovative education and creative performance events in various Los Angeles communities. 

National & international collaborations with performing & teaching artists are now in place with partners in New York City, Mexico DF, and Kolkata, India.

Brief History

The Sangeet School has been in existence since 1993, originally as a presenter under the name Shplang Community Arts. We opened our Highland Park center for presenting & teaching world music in 1996. We have been a vibrant force in the North East Los Angeles community, bringing quality multi-cultural arts programming for all ages (an average of 6-8 concerts annually) and ongoingclasses for children, youth and adults, including special workshops by visiting international artists. We have also had a greater civic presence in Los Angelesthrough our productions in the World Festival of Sacred Music (’01, ’04 & ’08)the Ford Amphitheatre, and numerous music festivals around the City, from Eagle Rock to Santa Monica and Pacoima to Orange County.

Recent: Events & Activities 2008

In addition to ongoing classes of eastern and western music in NELA, this past year we held our annual workshop of Indian music in Mexico City, building upon our continued relationship with students and partnerships between Mexico & the US. We also initiated a tour featuring artists from India and US performing together, including 18 concerts in the greater Los Angeles area and around Northern California and Central Mexico. Several concerts in the Los Angeles area were supported with funding from the Durfee Foundation and the American Composers Forum.

Upcoming: Programming 2009

Sangeet has been awarded a $10,000 teaching grant through the Music LA Program of the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Dept for teaching youth about Indian and world music traditions though creative performance ensembles incorporating instruments from east and west this May/June ‘09.

In December 2009 we are initiating ‘Sangeet Yatra’, a cross-cultural music program in Kolkata, West Bengal (Calcutta) for students from the West, to learn and interact with master teachers on a daily basis for 2 weeks in India, while attending nightly concerts and first hand exposure to the vibrantartistry of this cultural capital of India.

Constituency/Community

Sangeet has served the Highland Park community since 1996 including programs for children, youth & adults. Demographics average 35% Latino, 25% Europeandescent, 20% Asian, 10% Middle Eastern & 10% African American.

OrganizationalStructureofSangeet

We are a small organization that fluctuates between 1 and 2 part time staffmembers depending on our program load. The majority of expense is directed towards our artists as performers and educators. We have featured over 40 virtuoso artists & teachers representing authentic traditions from Asia, Latin America, Africa, Europe including local and visiting performers from abroad.

Paul functions as both director and board chair/president who in turn reports to the board in bi-annual meetings.

Administrator: Ray Samuel
sangeet@tanpura.com

Director Contact: Paul Livingstone
(323) 899-0704 zpaulz@gmail.com

Sangeet School of World Music
www.tanpura.com/sangeet (818) 754-8660
280A South Los Robles, Pasadena CA 91101
Federal non-profit tax id# 95-4340800



Sangeet Founders
(left to right) Leonice Shinneman (Tabla) Leticia Meza (Tanpura)
John Bergamo ( Ghatum) Paul Livingstone (Sitar)
at our original Highland Park location 1996


Download the mission statement