“Saraswati” is in reference to the Hindu Goddess of learning, science, and the arts. Devi Saraswati is considered a river goddess, because she is named for a river that once flowed in Northern India. She is often depicted holding The Vedas (the book of universal knowledge), a string of pearls (for meditation), a container of water (river, purity), and the veena (a musical instrument, which, due to its quality of sound and craft, represents perfection in the arts and sciences).
Under Saraswati River’s first performance was part of the Domeworks Series at the Children’s Museum of Science and Technology in Troy, NY – a presentation of visual and sonic art. The “Under” in the title refers to the fact that the viewers were under the dome, giving the effect of being under water. Images representing Saraswati were composited in real-time and video-projected into the planetarium dome. Curtis Bahn performed live sitar and dilruba, the sounds from which were synthesized with the vocals of Jayeeta Chowdhury.