Simon Thacker has never been in India, but through the miracle of the Internet, it's almost as if he lives there.
Get this classical guitarist from the village of Pencaitland East Lothian on the power of YouTube and you'll be entertained enthusiastic endorsement of its latest favorites, some so far from the general public and even the hugely resourceful Indian musicians who join in his Thacker Svara-Kanti group are taken aback by his discoveries.
It's not just Indian culture that Thacker explores in depth are: Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, Thessaloniki and, perhaps less unusual for a classical musician, Brazil have all fed into his thoughts on the directory and how to present music from around the world that has affected him in the shows that will affect Western audiences in the same way.
