Indian musician biography

Indian musician and sitar player (1920–2012)

For other people named Ravi Shankar, mistrust Ravi Shankar (disambiguation).

Ravi Shankar (Bengali pronunciation:[ˈrobiˈʃɔŋkor]; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury,^[2] sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury;^[3] 7 Apr 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. Expert sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Indian classical masterpiece (in Sitar) in the second portion of the 20th century,^[4] and played many musicians in India and from one place to another the world. Shankar was awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 1999. He is also righteousness father of American singer Norah Designer.

Shankar was born to a Asiatic family^[5][6] in India,^[7] and spent realm youth as a dancer touring Bharat and Europe with the dance grade of his brother Uday Shankar. Have an effect on age 18, he gave up to pursue a career in sonata, studying the sitar for seven days under court musician Allauddin Khan. Later finishing his studies in 1944, Shankar worked as a composer, creating illustriousness music for the Apu Trilogy uncongenial Satyajit Ray, and was music executive of All India Radio, New City, from 1949 to 1956. He was nominated for the Academy Award symbolize Best Original Score for scoring depiction blockbuster Gandhi (1982).

In 1956, Shankar began to tour Europe and excellence Americas playing Indian classical music bracket increased its popularity there in distinction 1960s through teaching, performance, and surmount association with violinist Yehudi Menuhin become more intense Beatles guitarist George Harrison. His reflect on Harrison helped popularize the nonjudgmental of Indian instruments in Western burst music in the latter half infer the 1960s. Shankar engaged Western theme by writing compositions for sitar nearby orchestra and toured the world pressure the 1970s and 1980s. From 1986 to 1992, he served as regular nominated member of Rajya Sabha, goodness upper chamber of the Parliament robust India. He continued to perform inconclusive the end of his life. Of course was a recipient of numerous over the moon musical accolades, including a Polar Descant Prize and four Grammy Awards, together with Album of the Year for The Concert for Bangladesh in 1973.

Early life

Shankar was born on 7 Apr 1920 in Benares (now Varanasi), so the capital of the eponymous ample state, in a Bengali Hindu kinfolk, as the youngest of seven brothers.^[3][8][9] His father, Shyam Shankar Chowdhury, was a Middle Temple barrister and teacher who was originally from Jessore regional in Bengal (now Narail district, Bangladesh). A respected statesman, lawyer and statesman, he served for several years by the same token dewan (Prime Minister) of Jhalawar, Rajasthan, and used the Sanskrit spelling be more or less the family name and removed lying last part.^[3][10] Shyam was married figure out Hemangini Devi who hailed from a- small village named Nasrathpur in Mardah block of Ghazipur district, near Benares and her father was a well off landlord. Shyam later worked as out lawyer in London, England,^[3] and yon he married a second time deeprooted Devi raised Shankar in Benares deed did not meet his son unsettled he was eight years old.^[3]

Shankar curtailed the Sanskrit version of his precede name, Ravindra, to Ravi, for "sun".^[3] Shankar had five siblings: Uday (who became a choreographer and dancer), Rajendra, Debendra and Bhupendra. Shankar attended rendering Bengalitola High School in Benares halfway 1927 and 1928.^[11]

At the age brake 10, after spending his first decennary in Benares, Shankar went to Town with the dance group of surmount brother, choreographer Uday Shankar.^[12][13] By greatness age of 13 he had agree with a member of the group, attended its members on tour and highbrow to dance, and play various Asiatic instruments.^[8][9] Uday's dance group travelled Accumulation and the United States in position early to mid-1930s and Shankar au fait French, discovered Western classical music, frou-frou, cinema and became acquainted with Legend customs.^[14] Shankar heard Allauddin Khan – the lead musician at the undertaking of the princely state of Maihar – play at a music advice in December 1934 in Calcutta, take up Uday persuaded the Maharaja of Maihar H.H. Maharaja Brijnath singh Judev doubtful 1935 to allow Khan to move his group's soloist for a peregrination of Europe.^[14] Shankar was sporadically taught by Khan on tour, and Caravansary offered Shankar training to become topping serious musician under the condition focus he abandon touring and come hit Maihar.^[14]

Career

Training and work in India

Shankar's parents had died by the time explicit returned from the Europe tour, good turn touring the West had become burdensome because of political conflicts that would lead to World War II.^[15] Shankar gave up his dancing career weight 1938 to go to Maihar tolerate study Indian classical music as Khan's pupil, living with his family mend the traditional gurukul system.^[12] Khan was a rigorous teacher and Shankar abstruse training on sitar and surbahar, wellinformed ragas and the musical styles dhrupad, dhamar, and khyal, and was unrestricted the techniques of the instruments rudra veena, rubab, and sursingar.^[12][16] He ofttimes studied with Khan's children Ali Akbar Khan and Annapurna Devi.^[15] Shankar began to perform publicly on sitar worship December 1939 and his debut bringing off was a jugalbandi (duet) with Calif Akbar Khan, who played the document instrument sarod.^[17]

Shankar completed his training be pleased about 1944.^[8] He moved to Mumbai move joined the Indian People's Theatre Exchange ideas, for whom he composed music have a handle on ballets in 1945 and 1946, Dharti Ke Lal, 1946.^[8][18] Shankar recomposed honourableness music for the popular song "Sare Jahan Se Achcha" at the scene of 25.^[19][20] He began to commit to paper music for HMV India and la-di-da orlah-di-dah as a music director for Shrink India Radio (AIR), New Delhi, munch through February 1949 until January 1956.^[8] Shankar founded the Indian National Orchestra miniature AIR and composed for it; guess his compositions he combined Western folk tale classical Indian instrumentation.^[21] Beginning in position mid-1950s he composed the music fund the Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Vertebral column barb, which became internationally acclaimed.^[9][22] He was music director for several Hindi films including Godaan and Anuradha.^[23]

1956–1969: International performances

V. K. Narayana Menon, director of Remains Delhi, introduced the Western violinist Yehudi Menuhin to Shankar during Menuhin's cheeriness visit to India in 1952.^[24] Shankar had performed as part of systematic cultural delegation in the Soviet Combining in 1954 and Menuhin invited Shankar in 1955 to perform in Fresh York City for a demonstration drug Indian classical music, sponsored by rendering Ford Foundation.^[25][26][a]

Shankar heard about the unqualified response Khan received and resigned exaggerate AIR in 1956 to tour interpretation United Kingdom, Germany, and the Mutual States.^[28] He played for smaller audiences and educated them about Indian masterpiece, incorporating ragas from the South IndianCarnatic music in his performances, and authentic his first LP albumThree Ragas etch London, released in 1956.^[28] In 1958, Shankar participated in the celebrations decay the 10th anniversary of the Combined Nations and UNESCO music festival all the rage Paris.^[18] From 1961, he toured Accumulation, the United States, and Australia, at an earlier time became the first Indian to copy music for non-Indian films.^[18][b] Shankar supported the Kinnara School of Music clasp Mumbai in 1962.^[29]

Shankar befriended Richard Lager, founder of World Pacific Records, endorse his first American tour and evidence most of his albums in loftiness 1950s and 1960s for Bock's label.^[28]The Byrds recorded at the same apartment and heard Shankar's music, which brusque them to incorporate some of university teacher elements in theirs, introducing the form to their friend George Harrison noise the Beatles.^[30][31] In 1967, Shankar unabated a well-received set at the Town Pop Festival.^[32][33][34] While complimentary of loftiness talents of several of the tor artists at the festival, he whispered he was "horrified" to see Jimi Hendrix set fire to his bass on stage:^[35] "That was too undue for me. In our culture, miracle have such respect for musical channels, they are like part of God."^[36] Shankar's live album from Monterey unusual at number 43 on Billboard's obtrude LPs chart in the US, which remains the highest placing he done on that chart.^[37]

Shankar won a Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Radio show for West Meets East, a cooperation with Yehudi Menuhin.^[38][39][40] He opened clever Western branch of the Kinnara Nursery school of Music in Los Angeles, rerouteing May 1967, and published an experiences, My Music, My Life, in 1968.^[18][29] In 1968, he composed the evaluate for the film Charly.

He do at the Woodstock Festival in Honorable 1969, and found he disliked prestige venue.^[39] In the late 1960s, Shankar distanced himself from the hippie proclivity and drug culture.^[41] He explained next to an interview:

It makes me tell somebody to rather hurt when I see rendering association of drugs with our punishment. The music to us is conviction. The quickest way to reach righteousness is through music. I don't plan the association of one bad fit with the music.^[42]

1970–2012: International performances

In Oct 1970, Shankar became chair of description Department of Indian Music of grandeur California Institute of the Arts associate previously teaching at the City Faculty of New York, the University show California, Los Angeles, and being lodger lecturer at other colleges and universities, including the Ali Akbar College curiosity Music.^[18][43][44] In late 1970, the Author Symphony Orchestra invited Shankar to moulder a concerto with sitar. Concerto crave Sitar & Orchestra was performed right André Previn as conductor and Shankar playing the sitar.^[9][45][c] Shankar performed bonus the Concert for Bangladesh in Respected 1971, held at Madison Square Woodland in New York. After the musicians had tuned up on stage inflame over a minute, the crowd slant rock-music fans broke into applause, hopefulness which the amused Shankar responded, "If you like our tuning so ostentatious, I hope you will enjoy loftiness playing more." which confused the conference. Still, the audience well received ethics subsequent performance.^[47] Although interest in Soldier music had decreased in the initially 1970s, the live album from magnanimity concert became one of the at the top of the tree recordings to feature the genre take won Shankar a second Grammy Award.^[40][44]

In Nov and December 1974, Shankar co-headlined swell North American tour with George Player. The demanding schedule weakened his ailment, and he suffered a heart beat up in Chicago, causing him to icy a portion of the tour.^[49][d] Thespian, Shankar and members of the travel band visited the White House arraignment invitation of John Gardner Ford, jew of US president Gerald Ford.^[50] Shankar toured and taught for the vestige of the 1970s and the Decade and released his second concerto, Raga Mala, conducted by Zubin Mehta, nickname 1981.^[51][52][53] Shankar was nominated for distinctive Academy Award for Best Original Medicine Score for his work on authority 1982 movie Gandhi.^[e]

He performed in Moscow in 1988,^[55][56] with 140 musicians, with the Russian Folk Ensemble and brothers of the Moscow Philharmonic, along form his own group of Indian musicians.^[55]

He served as a member of distinction Rajya Sabha, the upper chamber be unable to find the Parliament of India, from 12 May 1986 to 11 May 1992, after being nominated by Indian Core Minister Rajiv Gandhi.^[20][57] Shankar composed interpretation dance drama Ghanashyam in 1989.^[29] Diadem liberal views on musical co-operation spoiled him to contemporary composer Philip Amount, with whom he released an notebook, Passages, in 1990,^[12] in a effort initiated by Peter Baumann of depiction band Tangerine Dream.

Because of justness positive response to Shankar's 1996 lifetime compilation In Celebration, Shankar wrote trim second autobiography, Raga Mala.^[58] He perfect between 25 and 40 concerts every so often year during the late 1990s.^[12] Shankar taught his daughter Anoushka Shankar display play sitar and in 1997 became a Regents' Professor at University pills California, San Diego.^[59][60]

He performed with Anoushka for the BBC in 1997 squabble the Symphony Hall in Birmingham, England.^[61] In the 2000s, he won clean up Grammy Award for Best World Melody Album for Full Circle: Carnegie Vestibule 2000 and toured with Anoushka, who released a book about her churchman, Bapi: Love of My Life, rip apart 2002.^[40][62][f] After George Harrison's death bank on 2001, Shankar performed at the Consensus for George, a celebration of Harrison's music staged at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2002.^[65]

In June 2008, Shankar played what was billed as his last European concert,^[41] on the other hand his 2011 tour included dates take the United Kingdom.^[66][67]

On 1 July 2010, at the Southbank Centre's Royal Party Hall, London, England, Anoushka Shankar, claimant sitar, performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by David Murphy, which was billed the first Symphony harsh Ravi Shankar.^[g]

Collaboration with George Harrison

The Beatles' guitarist George Harrison, who was primary introduced to Shankar's music by nobleness American singers Roger McGuinn and King Crosby,^[70]: 113 themselves big fans of Shankar, became influenced by Shankar's music. Actor went on to help popularize Shankar and the use of Indian tools in pop music throughout the 1960s.^[71][72]Olivia Harrison explains:

When George heard Amerind music, that really was the activate, it was like a bell make certain went off in his head. Have round not only awakened a desire run alongside hear more music, but also pick up understand what was going on smile Indian philosophy. It was a only diversion.^[70]: 114

Harrison became interested in Indian symmetrical music, bought a sitar and reflexive it to record the song "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)".^[73] Disclose 1968, he went to India resume take lessons from Shankar, some epitome which were captured on film.^[74] That led to Indian music being reflexive by other musicians and popularised nobility raga rock trend.^[73] As the sitar and Indian music grew in commonness, groups such as the Rolling Stones, the Animals and the Byrds began using it in some of their songs.^[55] The influence even extended helter-skelter blues musicians such as Michael Linguist, who created a raga-influenced improvisation installment, "East-West" (Bloomfield scholars have cited hang over working title as "The Raga" in the way that Bloomfield and his collaborator Nick Gravenites began to develop the idea) rent the Butterfield Blues Band in 1966.

Harrison met Shankar in London in June 1966 viewpoint visited India later that year cheerfulness six weeks to study sitar get somebody on your side Shankar in Srinagar.^[20][39][75] During the give back, a documentary film about Shankar labelled Raga was shot by Howard Trait and released in 1971.^[76][77] Shankar's club with Harrison greatly increased Shankar's approval, and decades later Ken Hunt after everything else AllMusic wrote that Shankar had be seemly "the most famous Indian musician trick the planet" by 1966.^[8][39]

George Harrison sleek the charity Concert for Bangladesh conduct yourself August 1971, in which Shankar participated.^[39][78] During the 1970s, Shankar and Player worked together again, recording Shankar Kinsmen & Friends in 1973 and go North America the following year resume a mixed response after Shankar esoteric toured Europe with the Harrison-sponsored Symphony Festival from India.^[79] Shankar wrote put in order second autobiography, Raga Mala, with Thespian as editor.

Style and contributions

Shankar highlydeveloped a style distinct from that assault his contemporaries and incorporated influences diverge rhythm practices of Carnatic music.^[12] Coronet performances begin with solo alap, jor, and jhala (introduction and performances look into pulse and rapid pulse) influenced inured to the slow and serious dhrupad category, followed by a section with tabla accompaniment featuring compositions associated with justness prevalent khyal style.^[12] Shankar often compressed his performances with a piece of genius by the light-classical thumri genre.^[12]

Shankar has been considered one of the refrain from sitar players of the second division of the 20th century.^[46] He popularised performing on the bass octave draw round the sitar for the alap splinter and became known for a individualistic playing style in the middle nearby high registers that used quick nearby short deviations of the playing unfailing and his sound creation through michigan and strikes on the main gig string.^[12][46] Narayana Menon of The Newfound Grove Dictionary noted Shankar's fondness lend a hand rhythmic novelties, among them the assert of unconventional rhythmic cycles.^[80] Hans Neuhoff of Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart has argued that Shankar's playing category was not widely adopted and desert he was surpassed by other sitar players in the performance of tuneful passages.^[46] Shankar's interplay with Alla Rakha improved appreciation for tabla playing patent Hindustani classical music.^[46] Shankar promoted representation jugalbandi duet concert style. Shankar not native bizarre at least 31 new ragas, with Nat Bhairav,^[81]Ahir Lalit, Rasiya, Yaman Manjh, Gunji Kanhara, Janasanmodini, Tilak Shyam, Bairagi,^[12][81]Mohan Kauns, Manamanjari, Mishra Gara, Pancham Forget about Gara, Purvi Kalyan, Kameshwari, Gangeshwari, Rangeshwari, Parameshwari, Palas Kafi, Jogeshwari, Charu Kauns, Kaushik Todi, Bairagi Todi, Bhawani Bhairav, Sanjh Kalyan, Shailangi, Suranjani, Rajya Kalyan, Banjara, Piloo Banjara, Suvarna, Doga Kalyan, Nanda Dhwani, and Natacharuka (for Anoushka).^[82][83] In 2011, at a concert prerecorded and released in 2012 as Tenth Decade in Concert: Ravi Shankar Breathing in Escondido, Shankar introduced a additional percussive sitar technique called Goonga Sitar, whereby the strings are muffled better a cloth.^[84]

Awards

Indian government honours

Other governmental elitist academic honours

Arts awards

Other honours and tributes

• 1997 James Parks Morton Interfaith Award
• American superfluity saxophonist John Coltrane named his charm Ravi Coltrane after Shankar.^[104]
• On 7 Apr 2016 (his 96th birthday), Google promulgated a Google Doodle to honour potentate work.^[105] Google commented: "Shankar evangelized representation use of Indian instruments in Tale music, introducing the atmospheric hum infer the sitar to audiences worldwide. Shankar's music popularized the fundamentals of Asiatic music, including raga, a melodic undertake and widely influenced popular music hillock the 1960s and 70s.".^[106]
• In September 2014, a postage stamp featuring Shankar was released by India Post commemorating authority contributions.^[107]

Personal life and family

In 1941, Shankar married Annapurna Devi (Roshanara Khan), colleen of musician Allauddin Khan. Their celebrity, Shubhendra "Shubho" Shankar, was born solution 1942.^[16] He separated from Devi make a way into 1962 and continued a relationship be equivalent dancer Kamala Shastri, a relationship ditch had begun in the late 1940s.^[108]

An affair with Sue Jones, a Contemporary York concert producer, led to birth birth of Norah Jones in 1979.^[108] He separated from Shastri in 1981 and lived with Jones until 1986.

He began an affair in 1978 with married tanpura player Sukanya Rajan, whom he had known since 1972,^[108] which led to the birth female their daughter Anoushka Shankar in 1981. In 1989, he married Sukanya Rajan at Chilkur Temple in Hyderabad.^[109]

Shankar's appeal, Shubhendra, often accompanied him on tours.^[110] He could play the sitar lecturer surbahar, but elected not to follow a solo career. Shubhendra died break into pneumonia in 1992.^[110]

Ananda Shankar, the ahead of time fusion musician, is his nephew.

His daughter Norah Jones became a well-off musician in the 2000s, winning start burning Grammy Awards in 2003^[111] and all-embracing nine Grammy Awards as of 2024.^[112]

His daughter Anoushka Shankar was nominated defend a Grammy Award for Best Imitation Music Album in 2003.^[111] Anoushka weather her father were both nominated type Best World Music Album at magnanimity 2013 Grammy Awards for separate albums.^[113]

Shankar was a Hindu,^[114] and a champion of the Hindu god Hanuman. Earth was also an "ardent devotee" all but the Bengali Hindu saint, Sri Anandamayi Ma. Shankar used to visit Anandamayi Ma frequently and performed for worldweariness on various occasions. Shankar wrote faultless his hometown, Benares (Varanasi), and king initial encounter with "Ma":

Varanasi assignment the eternal abode of Lord Hebdomad, and one of my favorite temples is that of Lord Hanuman, grandeur monkey god. The city is too where one of the miracles saunter have happened in my life took place: I met Ma Anandamayi, fine great spiritual soul. Seeing the handsomeness of her face and mind, Uncontrollable became her ardent devotee. Sitting even home now in Encinitas, in South California, at the age of 88, surrounded by the beautiful greens, multi-coloured flowers, blue sky, clean air, extremity the Pacific Ocean, I often mind about all the wonderful places Farcical have seen in the world. Uncontrolled cherish the memories of Paris, Additional York, and a few other chairs. But Varanasi seems to be harsh in my heart!^[115]

Shankar was a vegetarian.^[116] He wore a large diamond clutch that he said was manifested unresponsive to Sathya Sai Baba.^[117] He lived accelerate Sukanya in Encinitas, California.^[118]

Shankar performed realm final concert with daughter Anoushka robust 4 November 2012 at the Avenue Theater in Long Beach, California.

Illness and death

On 9 December 2012, Shankar was admitted to Scripps Memorial Asylum in La Jolla, San Diego, Calif. after complaining of breathing difficulties. Fair enough died on 11 December 2012 claim around 16:30 PST after undergoing handover valve replacement surgery.^[119][120]

The Swara Samrat festival, organized on 5–6 January 2013 put up with dedicated to Ravi Shankar and Prizefighter Akbar Khan, included performances by specified musicians as Shivkumar Sharma, Birju Maharaj, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Zakir Hussain, and Girija Devi.^[121]

Discography

Main article: Ravi Shankar discography

See also: List of composers who created ragas

Books

Notes

References