Sheldon D’Silva

Sheldon D’Silva is an Indian bass guitarist who began learning the instrument at the age of 12 under the guidance of his father, Trevor D’Silva. Early exposure to live music and consistent practice shaped his development as a professional musician. By his teenage years, he was already performing with local bands and collaborating with senior artists.

He received mentorship from noted jazz pianist Louiz Banks, which played a role in his direction toward a professional music career. He later formed the band Nexus with Sangeet Haldipur and Gino Banks. Alongside music, he studied science at St. Andrew’s College and later trained as a commercial artist at B.D. Somani Institute of Art & Fashion Technology.

Sheldon D’Silva has worked across multiple genres, including jazz, funk, fusion, pop, rock, and Indian classical music. He has performed with a wide range of artists from India and abroad, including Zakir Hussain, Shankar Mahadevan, Rashid Khan, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Rakesh Chaurasia, and Niladri Kumar, among many others.

Internationally, he has collaborated or shared stage space with artists such as George Duke, John McLaughlin, Mike Stern, Trilok Gurtu, Talvin Singh, and members of Ozomatli. He has performed at major global festivals, including the Montreal Jazz Festival, Borneo Jazz Festival, Cape Town Jazz Festival, Java Jazz Festival, and Festival Internacional Cervantino.

He has also represented Asia as a music ambassador at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and has participated in global tours and cross-cultural projects. Sheldon is among the first Indian musicians to perform and record for Coke Studio Pakistan (Season 8) with the Mekaal Hasan Band.

His studio work includes recordings for numerous Bollywood film soundtracks, background scores, and international albums. He has been associated with bands such as SILK, SiTARFUNK, Louiz Banks Matrixx, D–Company, INDUS CREED, and Nexus.

Sheldon D’Silva plays MuB basses and is an international endorsee for D'Addario. His career continues to span live performance, studio recording, and collaborative music projects across genres.