Reflection on Saskia Rao-de Haas’ Session: Is it Fusion?
Saskia Rao-de Haas’ workshop made me rethink the whole idea of fusion in music. She explained that no genre is ever completely pure. Hindustani classical music carries Persian influences, Latin American music draws from indigenous, European and African traditions, and jazz grew from African rhythms alongside the blues. What we often call “fusion” is really just how music has always developed, through constant exchange and reinvention.
What stayed with me most was her insistence on innovation as the way traditions survive. She does not like being called a “fusion artist” because her work comes from over thirty years of learning and performing Indian classical music. For her, innovation means respecting the foundation of a tradition while also exploring new directions. She reminded us that you cannot bend the rules without first knowing them, and that strong roots are essential if music is to keep evolving.
She also spoke about collaboration as an important part of this process, especially in today’s globalised world. Working with musicians across cultures is not a dilution of tradition but a way of keeping it alive. The session left me with a new question: not whether music is fusion, but how artists can continue to innovate while staying true to their art.