Trove Of Tunes – Of Intimate Concerts and Genuine Connections
Between Jacob Collier’s grand orchestration and Manu Delago’s meditative intimacy, a shared space that stood stage for a genuine, human connection.
Six days apart, two concerts, two different orientations, and two completely different arenas, but we were unified by one quest for diverse influences, and for making a lasting connection.
Towards the end of November, and early December, 2025, Jacob Collier and Manu Delago performed in Bombay (Mumbai) as part of their respective India tours. Jacob travelled with a full band of musicians and 100+ instruments, and Manu winged in as a trio accompanied by their sound engineer. Individually, they have collaborated with diverse musicians from across the world, and for those two evenings, they channelled their spirits on us.
The Sum of Human Connection
Jacob had a few thousand people in attendance for his gig, and Manu played for 200+ people in a very intimate setting. The acoustics of the concert arena has a lot to do when it comes to translating the emotion and power of an artist’s composition to their audience—make them feel the notes and lyrics, have them reflect on the context of the composition, and help them emerge with a point of view at the end of each song. The other aspect is the energy of the people in the audience around you—how they behave, how they engage, and how they respect the artist and the art.
However, the aspect that is critical to my experience is simply how the artist engages with you at an individual level, which is where I found Jacob and Manu on the same stage, even if they were performing in two different arenas on different days. They were being honest and vulnerable, and they created an engagement loop with the audience. Their conversations and compositions punctuated their childhood memories, life experiences, and perspectives on simple, everyday relatable feelings.
There were times at Jacob’s court, where he was seeking permission from the audience to play a certain number from his albums. This is seemingly insignificant, but it’s such a deeply human deed that shows how much do the artists respect their audiences’ presence, time and space. Manu, during his concert thanked the audience for coming along, being patient, and listening silently. He was quick to follow that up with a light-hearted take on how silence can either mean that everything is going well and there are no complaints, or it’s not going well at all.
Jacob had the crowd sing along as he traversed his album catalogue from the past decade, backed by talented musicians from different countries. While, there was a lot of chatter on social media related to his collaboration with an Indian singer that was magnified with arrows of opinions, but the audience that day, beamed and swayed, cheered and passed on the happy vibe from one section to the other. Yes, he had his much-acclaimed act of conducting the audience choir, but beyond his juggling with gestures and instruments, the aspect that stood tall was his voice—warm and soulful, wrapped in an honest submission, and grounded in the service of a communal experience.
Manu along with Isa Kurz on violin, piano and vocals, and Clemens Rofner on bass and synth, had a similar hold on their audience. The trio took the audience through a meditative ride across the European landscapes, painting dreamy pictures amid life routines.
The Happy Place
The artist and audience interactions between songs are like grammar of human connection, which always tends to outlive the performance. These days, I’m more taken by these moments of one-on-one connection in a crowded space—something that’s personal and not performative. Both Manu and Jacob welcomed me to an open canvas, serenaded my ears with a rich tapestry of universal music with worldly grace, and gave me a happy place for those 90 to 120 minutes. Life’s work is often to find solitude in chaos, and these connections make the work enjoyable.
Listen Up
Little Blue from Jacob Collier’s 2024 album, Djesse Vol. 4, featuring Brandi Carlile on vocals. I love these lines that make up the chorus.
“Don’t be afraid of the dark
In your heart
You’re gonna find a way
To carry the weight of the world
On your shoulders
You’re gonna find a way home.”
Still from Manu Delago’s 2008 album, Adventions. The Hang Drum, Sitar, and the Didgeridoo chasing that illusive feeling of holding the pause.
I’m forever on the lookout for tunes old and new, You can check out my expanding Trove Of Tunes that I’m curating in a Spotify playlist.
Cheers,
Shri