Sanika is a Melbourne-based, Indian-born, Australian-raised artist. She graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor degree in Music Performance, specialising in Pop Voice. She is now studying a Bachelor of Audio Engineering at JMC Academy.

She has been singing since she was 7 years old. She also plays the ukulele and cello. This gal is a supporter of the LGBTQI+ community and all for female-empowerment. This is reflected in her musical creations. She has uploaded a few covers on Youtube and Soundcloud in the past few years. However, she is currently in the process of creating an EP called “Brave” that will be full of self-empowering originals, catchy melodies and creative lyrics. She loves songwriting and coming up with groovy melodies in her spare-time.

She is headlining at Brunswick Ballroom for her single launch for an Jazz/RnB/Pop single called "Brave". She has performed this song acoustically for FRINGE MELBOURNE'S first-ever, all-female Contemporary Music Line Up, MONASH UNIVERSITY OPEN DAY and her Monash Recital. This song has been covered at Crown's Electric Dreams Talent Showcase.

The supporting artists/bands during the event are JMC Academy’s Ruby Cannon and Pretty Flash. There will also be a special musical performance by a newly formed female trio!

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Tarab is an Arabic word that, while difficult to translate, encapsulates the pleasure and joy one gets from great, often classical Arab music. In 2019, Yousef Alreemawi; a Palestinian-Australian musician and intellectual, founded the ensemble after he realized instrumental classical Arabic music is under-represented in Victoria, and named it after the beautiful concept of Tarab.

While the Tarab ensemble started at the hands of multi-faith Arabic speaking musicians including Yousef on organ and Krikor Khaderian on saxophone (Syria/ Armenia), and attracted down the track: Khajak Khachigian on guitar (Syria/ Armenia), Husam Karam on oud (Syria), and Rayan Aridi on percussions (Lebanon), the vision of the ensemble has expanded to encompass non-Arab musicians: Sarah McDonald on flute (Australia), Vahideh Eissaei on qunan (Iran), Michael Currie on double bass (Australia). This is a testimony of the beauty, richness and diversity of Tarab and its ability to attract people from different cultures around it. We are also pleased to collaborate with local artists such as Lena Emmanuel (Iraqi singer).

Our repertoire is a unique mosaic of music for composers of classical Arabic music in mid and late 20th century such as Abdel-Wahhab and Baligh Hamdi, to contemporary classical composers such as Rahbani brothers, to composers of older styles such as Samaei (Rawhi Khammash) and Longa (Riyad Sunbati), to the Muwashah of Andalus, the Turkish-influenced Sufi music, and the Quduud of Syria, to Shaabi and Franco-Arab music of North Africa, and folk music of Arabian peninsula, Iraq and Palestine.

Today, and thanks to the talent and tireless efforts of its members and to enormous support of its audience, Tarab Ensemble has evolved to be Australia's leading and largest music group that is totally dedicated to instrumental classical Arabic music, but with a twist.