The third installment of the Folklife Festival’s Story Circle features Carnatic jazz vocalist Aditya Prakash in conversation with NPR music contributor Betto Arcos on Thursday, May 7, at noon EDT. The discussion will stream live on the Smithsonian Folklife Facebook page. RSVP on the event page to get a notification when the stream begins.

A native of Los Angeles, Aditya’s emotive voice reflects deep roots in South Indian classical music along with a love of jazz, qawwali (Sufi devotional singing), and more.

From Ravi and Anoushka Shankar to Karsh Kale and Akram Khan, Aditya has studied and worked with an impressive array of acclaimed artists. Face-to-face exchange has always been key to his creative process. How have his ideas about collaboration changed and what opportunities for experimentation and exploration does this moment of physical isolation hold? Importantly, what is he learning from traditional knowledge and practice—both of which are no strangers to innovation and exploration—that can help us imagine a post-COVID world? 

This conversation is offered as a contribution to “Care Package: Poems, Meditations, Films, and Other Cultural Nutrients for Times Like This,” curated and produced by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center. We encourage you to explore this innovative project designed to help us all “find some calm amidst the chaos.”