Sangeet Bhusan Pandit Ram Marathe

Swar Sanskruti music academy presents - Kalaranjan

Swar Sankruti Music Academy Presents 

Kalaranajan

Aditi Bhagwat - Kathak

&

Ravi Chary - Sitar

Three-day Sawai Gandharva festival from December 11,2014

This year's prestigious 'Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav', organized by Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, will be held between December 11 and 14 at New English School, Ramanbaug grounds, a statement issued by Shriniwas Joshi, executive president of Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, stated.

This is the 62nd year of the musical festival started by Kirana gharana doyen Bhimsen Joshi in the memory of his guru Sawai Gandharva. Other details will be announced later, Joshi said.

Sangeeta Shankar : The Singing Violin

Dr. Sangeeta Shankar is an Indian violinist who performs Hindustani classical music.

Early life of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar

Sangeeta Shankar, was born in Banaras in a musical family to N. Rajam and T. S. Subramaniyan. Sangeeta started her training at the age of four in Hindustani music under the unparalleled tutelage of her mother. People often refer to her music as the "Singing Violin". She is the niece of T. N. Krishnan

Education of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar

Sangeeta Shankar excelled in her academics, with gold medals in Bachelors & Masters in Music, and also a Ph.D. in music from The Banaras Hindu University.

Performing career of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar

She first started performing on television when she was 8 years old, and her career has been forging ahead ever since. She had the privilege of accompanying her mother at the age of 13, and gave a full-fledged debut solo performance when she was as young as 16. Her performance was much appreciated, and it wasn't long before she made a mark in the Indian classical music industry. Dr. Sangeeta Shankar had also organized a festival of young musicians in Varanasi called 'Abhinav', during the year 1984-85. She performs not only in various states and provinces of India, but also in numerous countries around the globe. She plays violin in the Gayaki Ang. Sangeeta has performed across the globe and in numerous places throughout India. She has performed in various countries in Europe, extensively toured the USA and Canada, and performed in countries like Russia, Holland, Japan, Singapore to name a few. She also conceived and created a TV serial of 26 episodes, named 'Swar Sadhana' in the year 2000. This serial was made for creating an awareness of Indian classical music among the masses. Its highlights were the interesting story format and the participation of various prominent celebrities like Madhuri Dixit, Javed Akhtar, Zakir Hussain, Birju Maharaj, Jagjit Singh, Naushad, Amol Palekar, Pankaj Udhas, Yukta Mookhey, Kanak Rele, Suresh Wadkar, N. Rajam, Sadhana Sargam, Shankar Mahadevan, Annu Kapoor, Veena Sahasrabuddhe, and many others.[1] Presently, she is the Director and founder of a music company, Legendary Legacy Promotions Pvt. Ltd.,[2] which consists of a storehouse of excellent classical music and also other exclusive products. Currently, she is also educating the future film makers, imparting voice culture & music training at Whistling Woods International. She is working on an educational project called 'Milaap', which aims to educate children about values and culture and inculcate an atmosphere of happiness, love and peace amongst humanity. She currently resides in Mumbai.

Albums/Discography of Dr. Sangeeta Shankar

• Tabula Rasa (Fusion) with Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and Bela Fleck, nominated in 1997 for Grammy Best World Music Award.
• Melody & Rhythm with Zakir Hussain
• Violin Dynasty (Raag Bageshree) with N. Rajam
• Aasha (Raag Jog)
• Kumari Sangeeta (Raag Bihag, Chayanat)
• Sensitive Strains of Violin (Raag Sohini, Bheem)
• A Delicate Touch (Raag Jogkauns, Desh)
• Together (Ragam Bhairavi, Malavi, Bilaharai, Todi) with N. Rajam
• Dedications to Dawn (Raag Mian ki Todi, Bairagi, Suha Sugharai)
• Sangeeta Shankar (Raag Todi, Bairagi)
• Music therapy for Migraine - Times Music (Raag Darbari Kanada)
• Saundarya (Raag Shyam Kalyaan)

Sangeeta Shankar at Shri Manik Prabhu Samsthan - Manik

Strad Violin

Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram - Grammy Award–winning Indian percussionist.

Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram (born June 24, 1944), also known as Vikku Vinayakram is a Grammy Award–winning Indian percussionist. He plays Carnatic music with the ghatam, an earthen pot, and is credited with popularizing the ghatam. He was awarded the Padma Shri, given by Government of India in 2002, and later the 2012 Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, the highest honour in the performing arts conferred by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama. Finally he was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2014.

Early life of Vinayakram

Vinayakram was born to Kalaimaamani T. R. Harihara Sharma, a musician and teacher. He took up playing at a very young age.

Career of Vinayakram

Vinayakram's concert career began at the age of 13. His first performance occurred on March 5, 1957 at the Sri Rama Navami festival in Thoothukudi. While proceeding for the arangetram the tuned ghatam instrument was broken by a child named Ganesh, which by itself had been a good omen for his bright career. where he accompanied V.V.Sadagopan. He was soon accompanying many famous vocalists in Carnatic music at the time, including Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna, G. N. Balasubramaniam, Madurai Mani Iyer, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, M. S. Subbulakshmi and Maharajapuram Santhanam, among others. His brother, T. H. Subhash Chandran, also excelled in the field. The Ghatam followed the master by rising to fame as a percussion instrument that required nimble fingers and strong stomach muscles to control the mouth of the pot.
Vinayakram's tryst with the international music platform came in the early 1970s when he joined Shakti to play along with John McLaughlin and Zakir Hussain.
He has also performed at Basant Utsav, the annual fund raiser for the Banyan. Vinayakram is Principal of Sri Jaya Ganesh Tala Vadya Vidyalaya in Chennai, India - the academy established by his late father and teacher in 1958. It continues to produce new stars of Carnatic percussion. Vinayakram's son V. Selvaganesh is a successful percussionist, especially after tours with John McLaughlin's group, Remember Shakti.

Discography of Vinayakram

• A Handful of Beauty (Shakti Album) (1976)
• Natural Elements (Shakti album) (1977)
• Planet Drum (1991) – Mickey Hart
• Mysterium Tremendum (2012) – Mickey Hart Band

Awards for of Vinayakram

Vinayakram was conferred the Hafiz Ali Khan Award for “unmatched contribution in the field of music” in 2000.[citation needed] He is also the first South Indian musician to be awarded the Grammy for Best World Music Album for his participation in Mickey Hart's Planet Drum, in which he played ghatam and morsing.[citation needed] He donated all the proceeds from the award to a charity organization in south India.[citation needed] He was also nominated for the 1996 Grammy Awards for Best World Music Album for his participation in 'Raga Aberi' along with L. Shankar on the ten string double violin and Zakir Hussain on the tabla (the piece is set in the tala cycle of 4¾ beats). The Indian Government decorated him with the Padma Shri Award in 2002.
Finally, he was awarded the 2012 Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna), the highest award in performing arts in India, given by Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Acdemy for Music, Dance and Drama. In 2014 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by Government of India.

Dr. N. Rajam - Violinist

N. Rajam (born 1938) is an Indian violinist who performs Hindustani classical music. She remained Professor of Music at Banaras Hindu University, eventually became Chair of the department and the Dean of the college. She was awarded the 2012 Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, the highest honour in the performing arts conferred by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.

Early life and training of Dr.N. Rajam

N. Rajam was born in Ernakulam-Kerala in 1938 in a musical family. Her father, Vidwan A. Narayana Iyer was a well-known exponent of Carnatic Music.[1] Her brother, T. N. Krishnan, is also a famous violist. Rajam started her initial training in Carnatic music under her father. She also trained under Musiri Subramania Iyer, and learned raga development from vocalist Pandit Omkarnath Thakur. Rajam received the prestigious titles of Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan from the Government of India. People often refer to her music as the "Singing Violin".

Performing career of Dr.N. Rajam

Rajam started playing violin at age three. By the age of nine, she was a professional musician. With guidance of her father, A. Narayana Iyer, she developed the Gayaki Ang (vocal style). Rajam has performed across the globe and in numerous places throughout India. She has performed in various countries in Europe, extensively toured the USA and Canada, and performed in countries like Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Netherlands, to name a few. Rajam was a Professor of Music at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in the Faculty of Performing Arts for nearly 40 years. She has been the Chair of the department and the Dean of the college at BHU.
Performed along with Ustad Zakir Hussein on 3rd Feb 2014 for A Homage to Abbaji - Ustad Allarakha.

Students of Dr.N. Rajam

She trained her niece, Kala Ramnath, her daughter Sangeeta Shankar, Pranav Kumar of Super 30 and her granddaughters Ragini Shankar, Nandini Shankar. Many of her students from BHU are famous violinists, including Satya Prakash Mohanty, V. Balaji and Swarna Khuntia.

Awards for Dr.N. Rajam

• Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 1990
• Padma Shri, 1984
• Padma Bhushan, 2004
• Puttaraja Sanmaana, 2004
• Pune Pandit Award, 2010, by The Art & Music Foundation, Pune, India
• 2012: Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna)

Discography of Dr.N. Rajam

• Violin Dynasty (Raga Bageshri)
• Dr. (Mrs.) N. Rajam (Violin Recital)

Raag mein ki todi by Dr. N. Rajam

61st Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav to be held from 12th to 15th December in Pune

A Jasrangi jugalbandi between vocalists Sanjeev Abhyankar and Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande, performances by flautist Praveen Godkhindi and veteran violinist R Kumaresh, sitar recital by Ustad Nishat Khan and tabla by Anindo Chatterjee will offer a rich fare of Indian classical music at the 61st Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav festival which will begin at Raman Baug Prashala grounds in Narayan Peth on December 12.





The jugalbandi has two vocalists singing two different ragas at the same time on two different scales. For the first time, the prestigious annual event will present nine artistes including Madhukar Dhumal (shehnai), Reva Natu, Wasim Ahmad Khan, Harish Tiwari, Indrani Mukherjee, Gulam Niyaz Khan (vocalists), Jayanthi Kumaresh (veena in Carnatic style), Mira Prasad (sitar) and Rajiv Taranath (sarod).





The four-day event will comprise meet-the-artistes sessions and screening of documentaries on the classical performing arts, Shreeniwas Joshi, executive president of Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal that organises the festival, told reporters on Wednesday. Dhumal will open the festival and Natu, a Gwalior gharana vocalist, will perform after him followed by Abhyankar and Bhide-Deshpande. Khan and Chatterjee will perform next followed by eminent vocalist Pandit Jasraj. On the second day, Agra gharana singer Wasim Ahmad Khan, santoor artiste Ulhas Bapat, who would be playing at the festival after two decades, veteran Kathak dancer Shovana Narayan will perform. The day will conclude with a performance by vocalist Begum Parveen Sultana. Vocal recital by Tiwari from Delhi, Mukherjee from Kolkata and Raja Kale, a joint performance by Godkhindi and Kumaresh will mark the third day's performances which will close with a vocal recital by veteran Malini Rajukar.





On the last day, two sessions, one in the morning and the other in the evening, will feature both new and seasoned artistes. The morning session will begin with a vocal recital by Upendra Bhat, followed by Jayanti Kumresh. The session will end with Patiala gharana exponent Ajay Chakrabarty's vocal performance. Sitar player Mira Prasad will open the evening session, followed by singer Gulam Niyaz Khan. Vocalist Arshad Ali Khan, who had won the hearts of many enthusiasts as a five-year old years ago, will take stage. Kaushiki Chakrabarty, who will perform here after 2006, will be followed by sarod player Rajiv Taranath - a student of Ali Akbar Khan. Kirana gharana doyen Prabha Atre will bring the festival to an end.