Shib Shankar Chowdhury, a western classical music composer and vocalist from Englishbazar in Malda, has been selected to perform at an international music conference organised by the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM) at the George Washington University in Washington DC.

The event, to be held as part of the celebrations to mark 250 years of American independence, is scheduled from February 26 to March 1.

During the conference, Chowdhury, 41, will perform three of his original compositions, Battle Zone, I Am Virus, and 1946, the last referring to the Calcutta riots.

He has also been invited to chair several academic music sessions at the event.

The Malda-born vocalist, who is also proficient on the piano and guitar, is among 75 performers selected from across the world.

“I will be presenting three of my compositions at the conference and will also chair some music sessions,” Chowdhury told The Telegraph.

Emmy Award-winning Macintosh Films of Hollywood has offered Chowdhury a joint venture for his next music album, he added.

Born and brought up in Malda, Chowdhury studied in Bengali-medium schools before completing his graduation. He later earned a postgraduate degree in English from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi, and went on to complete a PhD in English literature from the same institution.

In 2013, he underwent specialised training in English language teaching at Exeter College under the University of Oxford.

“After earning my PhD, I was appointed as an assistant professor in English at the Ghani Khan Choudhury Institute of Engineering and Technology in 2014,” he said. “However, from 2012 onwards, I felt a strong urge to pursue music seriously.”

Chowdhury trained rigorously for four years at the Calcutta School of Music in Ballygunge, attending classes on his weekly off-days. Since then, he has released 23 western music albums, which have drawn appreciation from music connoisseurs internationally.

“All these recognitions come from my unadulterated love for music,” Chowdhury said. “Now, my aim is to leave an indelible impression on music lovers in the US, and I am rehearsing intensely for the event.”

Chowdhury’s father, Sudhir Kumar Chowdhury, is a retired railway employee, while his mother, Meena Chowdhury, is a homemaker. His siblings Juthika Chowdhury and Raja Chowdhury are both academics.