Bhalla Week 4
Synopsis
Born in India in 1920, Ravi Shankar is an Indian musician and composer best known for his success in popularizing the sitar. Shankar grew up studying music and toured as a member of his brother's dance troupe. After serving as director of All-India Radio, he began to tour India and the United States, winning three Grammy Awards and collaborating with many notable American musicians, including George Harrison and Philip Glass. Shankar died in California on December 11, 2012, at age 92.
Young Years
Born on April 7, 1920, in Varanasi (also known as Benares), India, Ravi Shankar came into the world as a Brahmin, the highest class of Indians according to the caste system. His city of birth is a well-known destination for Hindu pilgrims and was once described by Mark Twain as "older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend and look[ing] twice as old as all of them put together."
Shankar lived in Varanasi until the age of 10, when he accompanied his brother, Uday Shankar, to Paris. Uday was a member of a dance troupe called the Compagnie de Danse et Musique Hindou (Company of Hindu Dance and Music), and the young Shankar spent his adolescence hearing the rhythms and watching the traditional dances of his culture. Looking back on the time he spent with his brother's dance troupe, Shankar once recalled, "I keenly listened to our music and observed the reaction of audiences on hearing it. This critical analysis helped me to decide what we should give to Western audiences to make them really respect and appreciate Indian music."
Early Music Career
At a music conference in 1934, Shankar met guru and multi-instrumentalist Allaudin Khan, who became his mentor and musical guide for many years. Just two years later, Khan became the soloist for Uday's dance troupe. Shankar went to Maihar, India to study sitar under Khan in 1938. (The sitar is a guitar-like instrument with a long neck, six melody strings, and 25 sympathetic strings that resonate as
Born in India in 1920, Ravi Shankar is an Indian musician and composer best known for his success in popularizing the sitar. Shankar grew up studying music and toured as a member of his brother's dance troupe. After serving as director of All-India Radio, he began to tour India and the United States, winning three Grammy Awards and collaborating with many notable American musicians, including George Harrison and Philip Glass. Shankar died in California on December 11, 2012, at age 92.
Young Years
Born on April 7, 1920, in Varanasi (also known as Benares), India, Ravi Shankar came into the world as a Brahmin, the highest class of Indians according to the caste system. His city of birth is a well-known destination for Hindu pilgrims and was once described by Mark Twain as "older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend and look[ing] twice as old as all of them put together."
Shankar lived in Varanasi until the age of 10, when he accompanied his brother, Uday Shankar, to Paris. Uday was a member of a dance troupe called the Compagnie de Danse et Musique Hindou (Company of Hindu Dance and Music), and the young Shankar spent his adolescence hearing the rhythms and watching the traditional dances of his culture. Looking back on the time he spent with his brother's dance troupe, Shankar once recalled, "I keenly listened to our music and observed the reaction of audiences on hearing it. This critical analysis helped me to decide what we should give to Western audiences to make them really respect and appreciate Indian music."
Early Music Career
At a music conference in 1934, Shankar met guru and multi-instrumentalist Allaudin Khan, who became his mentor and musical guide for many years. Just two years later, Khan became the soloist for Uday's dance troupe. Shankar went to Maihar, India to study sitar under Khan in 1938. (The sitar is a guitar-like instrument with a long neck, six melody strings, and 25 sympathetic strings that resonate as