Reminiscence by Satnam Galsian

This EP is a personal project in memory of my Naniji (maternal grandmother), Balbir Kaur Soor 15/07/1935 - 06/11/2023.

My Naniji was a devout Sikh and she started teaching me shabads (Sikh hymns) when I was four years old, this was the start of my musical journey.
When Naniji was receiving end of life care I took my electronic tanpura into the hospital and sang three shabads. I don’t know whether they could hear me or not but I felt that it was something I needed to do, and when Naniji passed away I sang one shabad at the funeral. On this EP are those shabads.
My cousin Sukhmani is playing tabla with me for three of the tracks, I think Naniji would have liked that, when I had the idea of recording the shabads I knew that it had to be Sukhmani who accompanied me.

Singing shabads isn’t something that I do very often anymore, I certainly didn’t think that I’d end up recording any but I decided that this was one of the best ways in which to honour my beloved Naniji. I miss them every day and will forever be grateful to them for everything that they did for me.

Satnam Galsian is a British Asian singer-songwriter and progressive folk artist from Leeds, whose music blends the rich tradition of Punjabi folk with contemporary, feminist storytelling.
Her songs are deeply rooted in her personal experiences, drawing on her own journey of identity, belonging, and empowerment.

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