Pandit Ramashray Jha passes away: (1928 - 2009)

Pandit Ramashray Jha (Ramrang) was born on August 11, 1928 in Darbhanga, Bihar.He received his initial training in Hindustani classical music from his father Pandit Sukhdev Jha and uncle Shri Madhusudan Jha. He was later trained by Pandit Bholanath Bhatt in Dhrupad, Khayal and Thumri. He also spent about 15 years of his youth with a drama company in Varanasi, which gave him a taste of popular folk music. He went on to become a distinguished composer, musician and scholar of Indian Classical Music. Appointed a teacher in 1955 in the Department of Music and Performing Arts, Allahabad University, he retired as Head the Department in 1989.

Pandit Jha was a distinguished teacher of music, teaching a number of eminent musicians over several decades. His Khayal compositions are rendered by many vocalists of repute. A regular performer, he was made fellow of the Uttar Pradesh Sangeet Natak Akademi in 1982. He created new Ragas like Mangalgujari, Tilakmalhar, Vishnukalyan, Chandravali, among others. In a composition titled Sangeet Ramayan, he published nearly 500 compositions set to Ragas and Talas. Apart from compositions of music he also published a number of books and articles in prestigious newspapers and journals.

Pandit Ramashray Jha passed away on January 1, 2009, in Kolkota, following complications wrought by heart surgery.