SHREYA BOSE
BHIMSEN JOSH ALLA RAKHA
Apparently, as a child, Bhimsen Joshi was so taken
by the the harmonium and tanpura that he would
often follow musical processions, at the end of which,
he would fall asleep on the streets on account of
exhaustion. This addictive disposition translated into
his becoming one of the most illustrated exponents of
the “khayal” form of singing. He had various teachers,
among them Agasara Channappa, who had trained
with Inayat Khan and Shree Shamacharya Joshi, a
descendant of Haridasa Shree Mahipati Dasaru. His
rendering of devotional songs in Hindi, Marathi and
Kannada did wonders for his popularity, and he is
remembered for kicking off the beginning of Mile Sur
Mera Tumhara ( 1988 ). The man who often set the percussion on his tabla to
Pandit Ravi Shankar’s sitar ran away from home at 12
to study the tabla with Mian Kader Baksh of the Punjab
gharana. Known for having put in ungodly hours of
practise, he metamorphosed his expertise that allowed
him to accompany the likes of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan,
Allauddin Khan, Vilayat Khan, Vasant Rai and Ali
Akbar Khan. As a soloist, he exhibited nothing nut
magnificence in terms of both skill and composition.
“Abbaji”, as he was affectionately addressed by his
disciples gained praise from Grateful Dead’s Mickey
Hart and jazz drummer Buddy Rich ( with whom he
collaborated ).
A great way to introduce yourself to the Bharat Ratna
awardee’s work is the Raag Marwa as he performed it
with Ustad Zakir Hussain.
His duet with Pandit Ravi Shankar on the Raga
Pancham se Gara is the go-to piece for everyone looking
for a way into this man’s astounding repertoire.
BHIMSEN JOSH
At nine, this legendary sitarist became the youngest musician to be employed by All India Radio. A student of Baba
Alauddin Khan, he is believed to have practised from fo ur in the morning to eleven in the night. Despite having only
been able to finish a few recordings, he performed actively and continued to learn from Ustan Alauddin Khan and his
children, Annapurna Devi and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. He sought music as an avenue to spiritual realisation and taught
few students for fear of not being able to devote the requisite amount of time to a large number of them. His sound,
rendered in the Maihar style of sitar playing is often referred to in the same breath as that of Pandit Ravi Shankar and
Ustad Vilayat Khan.
For both beginners and connoisseurs, one would unequivocally recommend his execution of the Raga Bhairavi with
Ustad Ali Akbar Khan.
The
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