In 1966, the famous
Beatles, George Harrison befriended him and began to take lessons from him. This
association catapulted him to
international fame. The Beatles’
guitarist then went to India for six weeks.
Here is something
extracted from his website. ….. the "talas" or "rhythmic
cycles" of a raga have unique
intricacy and rhythmic sophistication in Indian music. There are talas ranging
from a 3 beat cycle to 108 beats within a cycle! The most popular talas are
those which have 5,6,7,8,10,12,14, and 16 beats to a cycle. Indian classical
music is principally based on melody and rhythm, not on harmony, counterpoint,
chords, modulation and the other basics of Western classical music.
The system of Indian music
known as Raga Sangeet can be traced back nearly two thousand years to its
origin in the Vedic hymns of the Hindu temples, the fundamental source of all
Indian music. Thus, as in Western music, the roots of Indian classical music
are religious. To us, music can be a spiritual discipline on the path to
self-realisation, for we follow the traditional teaching that sound is God -
Nada Brahma: By this process individual consciousness can be elevated to a
realm of awareness where the revelation of the true meaning of the universe -
its eternal and unchanging essence - can be joyfully experienced. Our ragas are
the vehicles by which this essence can be perceived. The performing arts in India - music,
dance,drama, and poetry - are based on the concept of Nava Rasa , or the
"nine sentiments. Each raga is principally dominated by one of these nine
rasas, although the performer can also bring out other emotions in a less
prominent way. The more closely the notes of a raga conform to the expression
of one single idea or emotion, the more overwhelming the effect of the raga.
This instrument to
people like us is associated with him. It
is the ‘Sitar’, a plucked stringed instrument used mainly in Hindustani music
and Indian classical music. The instrument is believed to have been derived
from the veena, an ancient Indian instrument, which was modified by a Mughal
court musician to conform with the tastes of his Mughal patrons and named after
a Persian instrument called the setar (meaning three strings). Used widely throughout the Indian
subcontinent, the sitar became popularly known in the wider world through the
works of Ravi Shankar, beginning in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Pandit Ravi
Shankar, was the virtuoso sitar maestro who introduced Indian classical music
to the world and inspired the Sixties 'psychedelic' sound through his
collaboration with the Beatles. Shankar was born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury in
Benares (a.k.a. Varanasi, or Kashi), West Bengal, on April 7 1920. His mother a Bengali Brahmin and his father,
Pandit Dr Shyam Shankar Chowdhury, a wealthy landowner and minister in a
maharaja’s court, who left London to
practise law.
In October 1970
Shankar became chair of the department of Indian music of the California
Institute of the Arts after previously teaching at the City College of New
York, the University of California, Los Angeles, and being guest lecturer at
other colleges and universities. He
performed widely in many continents. Ravi Shankar was nominated for an Academy Award for
Best Original Music Score for his work on the 1982 movie Gandhi, but lost to
John Williams' ET.
He served as a
member of the Rajya Sabha, from 1986 to 1992 after being nominated by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. In July 2010, at the Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall,
London, England, Anoushka Shankar, on sitar, performed with the London
Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by David Murphy what was billed the first
Symphony by Ravi Shankar.
Shankar's eldest
daughter and protege Anoushka is now a respected sitarist in her own
right. His other daughter, the jazz
pianist and singer-songwriter Norah Jones.
I am not for
celebrating birthdays of persons who are no more … yet this Google doodle on
his 96th birthday is quite attractive.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
7th Apr 2016
