Secret Heart

Secret Heart is a solo instrumental track by Indian sitarist Anoushka Shankar. The composition appears on her 2013 studio album Traces of You. The piece has a duration of 5 minutes and 17 seconds. Deutsche Grammophon released the album on October 4, 2013. Secret Heart features Shankar performing the sitar, accompanied by minimal percussion and ambient textures.

The track blends Hindustani classical elements with contemporary production techniques. Shankar structures the piece around a recurring melodic motif, gradually introducing rhythmic variations. The composition does not follow a traditional raga framework but incorporates improvisational passages characteristic of her style. The album Traces of You marked Shankar’s first release following the death of her father, sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, though the album itself does not explicitly state a thematic connection to this event.

Anoushka Shankar produced Traces of You alongside Nitin Sawhney. The album includes collaborations with Norah Jones, Shankar’s half-sister, though Secret Heart does not feature her vocals. The track’s instrumentation remains sparse, emphasizing the sitar’s tonal range and expressive capabilities. Deutsche Grammophon distributed the album in physical and digital formats.

No official music video or single release accompanied Secret Heart. The track has been performed live by Shankar during her concert tours, often as part of a broader exploration of the album’s themes. The composition’s title does not reference a specific lyrical or narrative content, as the piece is entirely instrumental.