Satyajit talwalkar biography of michael

The Young Maestros

Background Reportage by Arunabha Deb
(January 2012)

In the first number of the Indian music, advocate and theatre magazine Avantika (published in January 2012), music newscaster Arunabha Deb wrote about birth new generation of great Hindoostani classical musicians aged between 30 and 40.

We present emperor article with an introduction careful eight portraits of musicians.

1. Grandeur past was glorious, the bestow delightful, the future burning bright
2. Kaushiki Desikan, 31, Kolkata, chorus-member of the Patiala Gharana
3. Manjusha Kulkarni Patil, 40, Pune, chorister of the Agra, Gwalior beam Jaipur gharanas
4.

Purbayan Chatterjee (35), Kolkata, sitar player of nobleness Senia Maihar gharana
5. Jayateerth Mevundi (38), Hubli / Karnataka, vocalist of the Kirana Gharana
6. Omkar Dadarkar (34), Kolkata, singer state under oath the Gwalior, Agra, Jaipur gharanas
7. Murad Ali (35), Delhi, sarangi player of the Moradabad gharana
8.

Satyajit Talwalkar(35), Mumbai, tabla trouper without specific gharana
9. Debanjan Bhattacharya (25), Kolkata, sarod player mock the Senia Maihar gharana


1. Excellence past was glorious, the exhibit delightful, the future burning bright

The popular media got many distinctive opportunity to kiss Hindustani air goodbye over the last declination.

Since the death of Ustad Alla Rakha in 2000, multitudinous stalwarts have followed - Ustad Vilayat Khan in 2004; Pandit Kishan Maharaj in 2008; Ustad Ali Akbar Khan in 2009; and, most recently, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi in 2011. Of what could well be called grand golden generation, only Pandit Ravi Shankar remains, evergreen (as subside has always been) at 92.

With each of these maestros passing away, the media has created murmurs of despair; touch each personal epitaph, it has built the tombstone of Hindostani music at large. The lament? Young people are disinterested interior either practicing or engaging now classical music; with the halcyon generation rested the hopes blond our great music, and straightaway, we are staring into (and therein comes that dirty word) a void.

The apprehension is absent, to say the very minimal.

Even before one takes nifty look at the plethora warrant really young Hindustani musicians ditch are performing at large, flood would be prudent to perception a step back and look over at the generation between say publicly one that is gone contemporary the one that is emergent. Who do we find? In the midst of instrumentalists we have Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Ustad Zakir Hussain and Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan; amongst vocalists, regarding are Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, Kishori Amonkar multi-use Ustad Rashid Khan.

So there was never any question of spick void.

What is heartening bash that new faces are before now knocking on the doors time off these maestros. And that shouldn't really be a surprise. Joy a tradition that has again measured the value of a- musician, among other things, mass the quality of his Catalogue her disciples, it is exclusive expected that each generation essential work as hard as authority one previous in ensuring go the legacy continues.

Of way, the world changes a riot bit every day. For under-40 musicians today, there are options that their gurus could weep have imagined. That makes that generation more divers still: their choices define them more substantially than ever before: some plot stuck to tradition, some be endowed with abandoned it altogether and ascendant are in the process make famous figuring out a place anywhere in between.

As the authorize girl of the new propagation Kaushiki Desikan so eloquently puts it, "Tradition is a humid motion - we are unprofessional in ti, but then miracle also contribute to it."


2. Kaushiki Desikan, 31, Kolkata, vocalist promote to the Patiala Gharana

Kaushiki had afoot out as a complete conformist.

She stormed into the field of music at the pursuit of 17, in 1997, peer her debut concert at primacy India Habitat Centre in City. Her rendition of Kedar (later released by Music Today) was enough to answer the critics who were vicious in attributing her early success to kill lineage. Daughter and disciple confront Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty, Kaushiki has always carried the weight replica her legacy with clarity stomach ease.

"I'm not foolish skimpy to think that other girls my age couldn't have concluded what I have if they got the same opportunities restructuring I did," she says. Nevertheless she's quick to add consider it she has justified these opportunities: "An organizer may come come to me once or even twice over because I'm my father's lass, but he wouldn't come tone of voice a third time if why not?

didn't really want me capable perform in his festival."

At 31, she is unquestionably the solid female vocalist of her procreation. Today, it would be amusing to insinuate that she holds this mantle on the part of her father's stature bear hug the music world. Right exaggerate shaping her gayaki to critical on the trajectory of mix career, her decisions have bent her own.

Earlier in barren career, she was heavily criticized for her overemphasis on tayari (especially on sargam-based taans) predicament her recitals, but she cemented to what she believed take on. "I'm not a 40-year-old intent in a twenty-something's body," she had told this reporter four years back "As a callow girl, I like to ordain my sargams and provide ingenious certain climax to my recitals." Eventually, what was a let down of criticism became a distinguished hallmark in her singing.

Naysayers still point this trait finger as a signifier of grouping immaturity, but, as always, bare response to criticism is counterpoised. "I know that sometimes Unrestrained go overboard with my tayari. I am working on lot. But at the same day, it is ridiculous to make light of that tayari implies immaturity. Positive, Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan's gayaki was immature?"

In terms retard her professional choices, she has been less in haste more willingly than many in her generaton close to experiment with other forms.

"I first wanted to ensure walk my identity as a pattern singer was entrenched in justness minds of audiences. I was apprehensive that by experimenting collect other forms too soon, Distracted would risk diluting that identity," ??she said. For her, interpretation decision to involve herself polished a non-classical project is everywhere dertmined by one factor: "I ask myself, can I aid my presence in the project?" Of late, her inner words has been answering fairly often in the affirmative: she has sung in two Bengali films: Chaplin and Jani Dekha Hobe; in another, Chitrangada, apart put on the back burner having sung, she appears display the film as herself (quite a clever ploy by Bengal's raging auteur Rituparno Ghosh there finally get her on depiction screen; he has been annoyance her to act for totally a few years now).

There settle also independent albums in probity offing: one in collaboration tighten Rabindrasangeet singer Sraboni Sen gift another, a joint effort surpass Purbayan Chatterjee and Sonu Nigam.

But these new ventures maintain not hindered her previous set back in any way: even enlighten, she is as busy likewise ever with her classical concerts. This season, she has well-ordered concert in Maharashtra almost all week.


3. Manjusha Kulkarni Patil, 40, Pune, singer of the Metropolis, Gwalior and Jaipur gharanas

Manjusha Kulkarni Patil, another fierce young minstrel, is flying Maharashtra's flag tall.

Listeners find her only seriousness the classical stage and detach from the kind of following she has generated, it seems dump she doesn't need to setting beyond that space. Hers denunciation almost a textbook success story: small town, backbreaking riyaz, sluggish start, and finally, the flare at the end of character tunnel.

She was born resolve Sangli, Maharashtra; after initial talim under Chintubua Mhaiskar, she became a disciple of Pandit Rotate. V. Kane (popularly know brand Kane Bua). Kane lived break open Ichalkaranji, a town close want Sangli: Manjusha had to move round daily between the two towns for her talim. On weekends she would stay over popular her guru's house for high-pressure talim and riyaz.

"The weekends were special", she says. "It was a continuing process cue learning and then practising rejoicing front of him. If Farcical made a mistake, he would immediately stop me and Unrestrained would have to keep revelation the part until I got it right."

She narrates stories describe how she has sat grasp the tanpura for ten noon at a stretch while shun guru has taught her.

Connect value system, expectedly, is added attuned to the old school: "I see students using recorders now to record their talim sessions. I think this esteem quite harmful: your attention shambles never as focused. When jagged know that you have unified shot at internalising what your guru is teaching, the talim is immediately elevated to concerning level.!

Kane was an exponent show consideration for the Agra and the Gwalior gharanas.

Manjusha's gayaki is erect to both gharanas. Her show guru, Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, denunciation also an Agra and Gwalior exponent (as well as Jaipur - Atrauli). She feels consider it the Agra gharana has, hold sway over late, been on the die out and vocalists partially trained gather the Gwalior gharana tend harangue prioritise the Gwalior elements fend off others.

"That's why I establishment to bring out the City flavour in my renditions. Off and on I do nom-tom alaps (a dhrupad-inspired Agra speciality), but that depends on the raags playing field whether it fits into blue blood the gentry Agra style", she says.

She offers a rich variety within go in khayal presentations; she also traverses with ease across different genres of light classical music.

Thumris and bhajans are part carp every vocalist's repertoire; her demand over tappas, natyasangeet and lavanis differentiate her from her institution The combination of her heavyduty voice and her repertoire firstly made her a favourite solution western India, but now she is being regularly invited withstand perform at Delhi and City. Her recital at the Dover Lane Music Conference last twelvemonth created a buzz that clampdown young artists can achieve bring in Kolkata, which, as Pandit Ravi Shankar puts it, is yet "the final frontier of music" to be conquered by commonplace artiste.


4.

Purbayan Chatterjee (35), City, sitar player of the Senia Maihar gharana

The rules don't manor house for instrumental music. Purbayan Chatterjee had figured this out at. He stormed into the Metropolis performance circuit in his recent teens; the early success could be attributed to the fellow of his playing style make that of late Pandit Nikhil Banerjee.

His father and guide, Partha Chatterjee, was a pupil of Banerjee. Purbayan consciously modelled himself in the image classic the maestro, to the evocative that he played raag Darbari and raag Hemant in authority first appearance at Dover Road - the same raags la-de-da by Banerjee in his final appearance at the festival.

Magnanimity confidently performed pieces evoked romanticism for many Banerjee fans nearby brought Purbayan significant recognition mock the start of his being. But Purbayan knew he could not ride on nostalgia defend long. Before people started trade him a clone, he absolutely changed his playing style gain then followed up by dramatically changing his musical persona.

Ask companionship connoisseur to identify the sitar's brightest hope and you corroborate sure to get Purbayan's nickname.

You can also be identify with that after him, most children will fumble for a subordinate name. In the generation funding sitar players after Pandit Budhaditya Mukherjee and Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan, Purbayan has essentialy potent a monopoly.

He asserts that turn out well was the time spent consider non-musicians that gave him top-hole new perspective, which, in fasten, made him reconsider his installation as a musician.

Before anything else, he wanted to drive away the myth that classical musicians are entitled to the heraldic sign rung in the hierarchy take music. "I launched my important band, Shastriya Syndicate, as boss classical ensemble," he says. "I had then felt that Crazed was doing something more inordinate than fusion. I soon accomplished that this supposed high earth was of no use; lose concentration playing with other genres bring into play music was challenging and satisfactory.

I decided that I would perform both classical and collective music - and that Hysterical won't be shy or sound denial about co-existing in nobility two different worlds."

The source set in motion Purbayan's confidence is the piety that classical organisers still point up in him. They might hoard that he is a in favour choice in several corporate shows and that his antics cede the electric sitar around king neck are several cultural almost entirely away from his classical incarnation but he continues to titter invited to all the key festivals in the country, attach it Saptak, Sawai or position Tansen-Samaroh.

His classical concerts wait no whiff of his beforehand ventures: he adheres to nobility strict demands of raags favour listeners have accepted his esthetical blend of contemplative alap sports ground forceful tayari, the latter frequently drawing from the Imdadkhani Gharana.


5. Jayateerth Mevundi (38), Hubli Unofficially Karnataka, singer of the Kirana Gharana

Last year's Dover Lane Fete witnessed a rare phenomenon.

Great lanky young man from Hubli-Dharwad (that square inch of ghostly in northern Karnatak tha not at all ceases to produce brilliant vocalists) was invited to sing timepiece the festival for the secondbest year in a row. Come apart from top maestros (and Kaushiki Desikan), almost no other grandmaster is accorded this honour meander the organisers of Dover Point reserved for Jayateerth Mevundi.

Courier they foudn vindication in unembellished special guest in the control row: Pandit Jasraj dropped interleave especially to listen to Jayateerth and, when the youngster concluded his rendition of Puriya Kalyan, gave him a standing ovation.

But Jayateerth is no stranger picture special attention. His life confidential hit rock bottom in honesty early Nineties: His singing employment was not taking off remarkable he was finding it rock-solid to make ends meet show Hubli.

Eventually, he took nifty job as a tanpura thespian with All India Radio, Province, and left his hometown. Eke out a living was during his tenure behave Goa that he received integrity phone call that changed circlet life. The station director summoned him to say that thither was a call for him from Pune. It was Pandit Bhimsen Joshi who was have under surveillance the line.

The maestro esoteric heard reports of Jayateerth's recitals and wanted him to accomplish at the Sawai Gandharva Sangeet Mahotsava that year (a party that Joshi orgnised in interpretation memory of his guru, Pandit Sawai Gandharva). Jayateerth was terrestrial a forty-minute slot, enough hold your horses for him to sing marvellous Yaman that sent the assignation into a tizzy.

They would not let him go care for one piece and hollered foothold more. He gave them shipshape and bristol fashion Bahar, but they wanted very still. Joshi then requested him to sing a Kannada bhajan - a trademark of Hubli-Dharwad, their common place of childbirth. Later, Joshi was to aver on several occaisons that nobleness future of the Kirana Gharana was safe in Jayatheerth's hands.

To his credit, Jayateerth has cursory up to that promise.

Turn he is the most noticeable young face of the Kirana Gharana is a foregone conclusion; it would not be implicate exaggeration to say that no problem is the leading male chorus-member of his generation. He has left his AIR job slab is back at Hubli. "I find a lot more serenity here," he says, "there court case no better place to field of study on my music and hullabaloo my riayz." He has clumsy intentions of moving to wonderful bigger town.

And why sine qua non he? Organisers from across picture country are seeking him fathom from his quiet haven; her majesty decision to remain there has not come at a outdated price. He has regular recitals in Delhi and in Metropolis. And as for Maharashtra vital northern Karnataka, he has elegant recital almost every day disintegrate peak season.


6.

Omkar Dadarkar (34), Kolkata, singer of the Gwalior, Agra, Jaipur gharanas

The only treat male vocalist whose name crops up alongside Jayateerth Mevundi's anticipation that of Omkar Dadarkar. Rule singing style is totally different: as a disciple of Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar he fuses City, Gwalior and Jaipur in gayaki. But in terms help impact on audiences he high opinion at par with Jayateerth.

Tap works out differently for last young musician and Omkar court case certainly not yet as elegant as Jayateerth, but if just out recitals are anything to make a payment by, he should not put pen to paper far behind. Last monsoon, tiara rendition of Miyanki Malhar rest a Kolkata recital (with ruler guru sitting in the have an advantage row: always a nerve-wracking experience) was nothing less than celebrated.

Eyes shut, it would enjoy been impossible to tell ensure it was an upcoming thespian who was singing and very different from a maestro. His pukaars admire the higher octaves, his inaudible taans and the splendour nigh on his baritone at large industry combined to assert his consign as one of the ideal young artistes in the country.

And he does not seem standing be particularly perturbed about acceptance.

"Different people have different sun of success. Right now Irrational am happy to be to what place I am," he says. Pacify is presently a junior governor at the ITC Sangeet Analysis Academy in Kolkata, a angle that gives him time let in riyaz and, more importantly, neighbourhood to his guru who psychoanalysis also at the academy.

Put in the bank spite of an intimate talm schedule with his guru, Omkar has been careful to keep away from imitation. Kashalkar is one make merry the leading maestros of say publicly country today; over the clutch decade audiences have been undeveloped to both him and Omkar; it was imperative for rank disciple to forge an detached style.

Imitation would have surely resulted in rejection by probity audience: it is well traditional that nobody wanty a copy, particularly when the original recapitulate still in circulation.

7. Murad Khalifah (35), Delhi, sarangi player bad buy the Moradabad gharana

As the summit promising young ambassador of representation sarangi, Murad Ali is loved across the board: classical vocalists, music directors and bands shout vie for his time.

Significant succeeds in not disappointing sense of balance of them. Alongside, he along with gets solos at festivals come into view Sawai Gandharva and Vishnu Digambar Jayanti, where there are rebuff regular slots for sarangi solos. A sixth-generation sarangi player, Murad says that he was on no account pressurised to take up nobleness instrument.

"My twin brothers make reference to the sitar. Even I could have chosen another instrument. Nevertheless I wanted to carry net the family legacy," he says.

He took lessons in singing cope with on the instrument from queen grandfather Ustad Siddique Ahmad Caravansary and father Ustad Ghulam Sabir Khan respectively.

By his completely 20s, Murad was a ordinary in studio recordings and challenging also built considerable reputation by reason of a classical musician. "I put on a huge debt to Shubha Mudgal and Aneesh Pradhan," smartness says. "I was part reveal her Ab Ke Sawan dispatch have been playing with put your feet up ever since. She encouraged prevail on to believe that I could be a classical and simple commercial musician at the unchanged time." He is not shillyshallying to admit that he has learnt as much from sound directors during studio recordings by the same token he has from his gurus.

"Studio recording is far break easy. There's no room on a par with go wrong and anyone would hate being corrected by prestige music director in front show consideration for other musicians. That pressure endlessly pushes you towards perfection."

In ownership with the trend of culminate generation, Murad is also osculate deep in collaborative music.

Illegal was a member of Purbayan Chatterjee's ensemble Shastriya Syndicate boss has recently formed his dispossessed band Soul Samvaad. "Fusion lacks serious engagement," he says, "and it's also a great progress for us to earn means. And fusion doesn't have break down be the dhik-chik variety - our pieces are based lard raags and what conforms joke our aesthetics." Murad is bring in agreement with Purbayan Chatterjee: although long as the two kinds of music don't overlap, onlookers on both sides are make happy.

However, he does sound adroit note of caution: he feels that fusion is often unique as a sham because oblige many young musician it psychoanalysis an easy route to secure shows. "If you want damage advance as a Hindustani summit, you have to go weed out a period of uncompromised talim," he says. "Only when goodness fundamentals are in place, stare at you think of venturing to new and meaningful experiments."


8.

Satyajit Talwalkar(35), Mumbai, tabla player shun specific gharana

Since the success objection the group Shakti in distinction late Seventies, with Ustad Zakir Hussain as one of blue blood the gentry driving forces behind it, distinction tabla has probably emerged significance the most popular cross-cultural appliance.

Consequently, tabla players have anachronistic in great demand to join in in collaborative ventures. Satyajit hype among the finest young tabla players in the country today; it is not surprising cruise he has been asked without more ado collaborate with several groups. On the other hand, like sarangi player Murad Kaliph, he has taken his put on ice before taking the plunge.

He level-headed the son of tabla magician Pandit Suresh Talwalkar and singer Padma Talwalkar.

Though he was always interested in vocal tune euphony, his love for rhythm smooth as a child pushed him towards the tabla. Under surmount father's guidance, he phased exterminate his learning (and eventually consummate career) according to the narrow rules of tradition. "Initially, Irrational was trained to be skilful soloist.

For the first lightly cooked years, till I was 16 or so, that was straighten main focus. Most of futile talim comprised matter that Frenzied could play in solos. Slowly, my father started asking cause to be in to accompany vocal and redouble, after some time, instrumental symphony. And then, much later, just as I felt that I was somewhat comfortable with these glimmer aspects of tabla playing, sincere I decide to venture bash into fusion," he says.

Satyajit asserts wander it is imperative to precede establish oneself as a well-proportioned attic musician.

According to him, "That is where the real ignore lies. In fusion, a chronicle of stuff is rehearsed, ready to react know where the piece quite good going to go. But essential classical you don't know hoop the artist is going quick go. Plus, in classical concerts, you perform in front deduction connoisseurs, that's always a ridiculous feeling." He does play very much often with other genres on the other hand insists that the satisfaction answer playing pure classical music interest unmatched.


9.

Debanjan Bhattacharya (25), City, sarod player of the Senia Maihar gharana

Debanjan Bhattacharya, the youngest of the artists featured apropos, largely chooses to walk rendering pure classical path. At 25, he is already an empanneled artist with the Indian Legislature for Cultural Relations (which court case the pool the ICCR chooses from when it organises gossip in India and abroad); has won the first prize have round a national competition organised close to All India Radio; and has performed in most of grandeur major music festivals in empress home town of Kolkata.

Ham-fisted wonder, then, that he commission being tipped as the newfound face of the sarod let slip the Maihar gharana. He gave his first public performance adjust 2003, as a curtain charity performance for a recital of sovereignty guru Ustad Ashish Khan, parallel with the ground a packed Nazrul Manch get Kolkata. In the eight age since, he has more facing fulfilled his promise.

Debanjan did okay in school and went examine to study electronics and travel ormation technol engineering.

In fact, he accustomed a job offer from Infosys while he was still embankment college, which is when fiasco had to battle the catch of choosing a conventional growth or following his passion occupy music. "I decided to dance a master's instead," he alleged. "Taking up the job would have meant the end advance my music." That turned grow to be a stellar vote (Bengali engineers are not mess short supply); since then, Debanjan has surged ahead as freshen of the brightest hopes speedy instrumental music.

His recitals habitually display uncanny maturity: his paraphrase of Marwa in a respect concert to Ustad Ali Akbar Khan had stunned listeners. Conduct is one of the mega difficult raags to execute smokescreen the sarod; Debanjan had thorough it with a balance retard aesthetic judgement and virtuosity dump would be beyond most mighty maestros.

His judgement in charting a performance career displays the same as maturity. Collaborative opportunities abound funds sarod players but he recapitulate steadfast in his decision emphasize first establish his identity laugh a pure classical musician.

Debanjan's preference and success reinforce the very truth that is evident have dealings with all these young artists: entertain spite of the media waxing eloquent about the need tend classical musicians to rethink become calm reposition themselves for better musicians who are following leadership traditional route are doing rational fine.

Just as it give something the onceover a myth that young typical musicians are disappearing, it bash equally a myth that juvenile audiences are looking for new-found soundscapes and are turning shot from classical concerts. A stop off to any of the a sprinkling music festivals, especially in peter out towns, will reveal hundreds help young faces in the hearing.

Yes, there is a growth demand and hence an disbursement market for collaborative music, however it would be incorrect submit say that this has tattered into the space occupied soak pure classical music. The four markets are quite separate meticulous, happily, seem to be concurrent well. What is significant not bad that none of the countrified musicians with promise of grandness has put the cart previously the horse: like their gurus, they have first slogged silky their craft, established their authorization as classical musicians and next have opened themselves up identify experimenting.

Their stories, like scream the stories in the globe of Hindustani music, have distinction same age-old moral: there musical no short-cuts to being dexterous maestro.