Nowadays not a month passes without the announcement of a 'first time ever' duet concert between one big-name musician and another. Most of these turn out also to be 'last time ever' events involving the pair. The conclusion is obvious: audiences feel attracted by the promise, and cheated by the product.

This does not appear to discourage either bigname musicians or their concert organisers. They seem surprisingly eager to risk their credibility for the rewards of a onenight stand. If they had understood Hindustani music a little better, they would have known better and probably, also acted differently.

A duet, as a presentation format, is fundamentally inconsistent with the creative aspect of Indian music and, in addition, the meditative-contemplative character of Hindustani music. As a predominantly improvised form, it can really accommodate only one musician. Any accompaniment, whether drone, melodic or rhythmic, must be supportive and complementary, not competitive or distracting.