Musical Wednesdays in August 2005

The first Wednesday in August featured a vocal music recital by ITC-SRA scholar Ruchira Kale, disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar. She began with khayals in Raga Shuddh Kalyan and concluded with Raga Kedar. She was accompanied by Aslam Khan on the tabla and Rupashree Bhattacharya on the harmonium.

On 10th August, 2005, ITC-SRA scholar Abir Hossain presented a sarod recital. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta, he presented alap, jod, vilambit gat, drut gat and jhala in Raga Gaud Malhar. He concluded with a gat in Raga Surdasi Malhar. Gopal Mishra accompanied him on the tabla.

The third week brought ITC-SRA scholar Ranjani Ramachandran to the dais. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, she began her recital with khayals in Raga Bihagda. She concluded with the dadra ‘Sawariya pyara more guiyan’. Sandip Roy Chowdhury provided tabla accompaniment while Jyoti Goho played the harmonium.

The last Wednesday in August brought the celebrated sarodiya Pandit Tejendra Narayan Majumdar to the ITC Sangeet Research Academy. The talim of such well-known Gurus as Ustad Bahadur Khan, Pandit Ajoy Sinha Roy and the celebrated Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, has equipped him to be one of the better known sarod players of the present generation. Inspired by a packed auditorium with several celebrities in attendance, he began his recital with an elaborate alap in Raga Marwa. This was followed by gats in Ragas Desh Malhar, Tilak Kamod and Jhinjhoti. He concluded with a dhun in Mishra Kafi. Scintillating rhythmic support was provided by Samar Saha at the tabla.

Musical Wednesdays in July 2005

The first Wednesday in July found ITC-SRA scholar Gourab Chatterjee, disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Arun Bhaduri, at the dais. He began his recital with khayals in Raga Bihag and concluded with a khayal in Raga Megh. Tarak Saha accompanied him on the tabla while Rupashree Bhattacharya provided harmonium support.

It was ITC-SRA scholar Samarth Nagarkar’s recital on Wednesday July 13, 2005. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, he began with khayals and a tarana in Raga Kedar followed by Raga Tilak Kamod. He concluded with a composition in Raga Bhairavi. Swapan Mukherjee accompanied him on the tabla and ITC-SRA scholar Gourab Chatterjee provided harmonium support.

ITC-SRA scholar Supratik Sengupta was the artiste on Wednesday July 20, 2005. He is a disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta. He presented a sitar recital. He began with alap, jod, vilambit gat, drut gat and jhala in Raga Miyan ki Malhar, followed by Raga Jog. Gopal Mishra provided tabla accompaniment.

ITC-SRA Guru Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan performed on the last Wednesday in July. He is a truly blue-blooded vocalist whose family tree has a distinguished lineage that can be traced to the founders of the Kirana Gharana. Initiated and trained by his father, Sarangi-nawaz Shakoor Khan Sahab, he had joined ITC Sangeet Research Academy as a musician scholar in 1981, after his father passed away. Carrying on the family tradition with élan, he has a wide circle of admirers and disciples. He began his recital with khayals in Ragas Miyan ki Malhar, Gaud Malhar and Khamaj. He was brilliantly supported on the tabla by Shri Samar Saha while Rupashree Bhattacharya was at the harmonium. His disciples Saunak Chatterjee and ITC-SRA scholar Arshad Ali provided vocal support.

Musical Wednesdays in June

The first Wednesday in June found ex-scholar Shashank Maktedar, disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, at the dais. At present Shashank is a lecturer at Goa College of Music, Panaji. He began his recital with khayals in Raga Marwa, followed by Raga Yaman. Tarak Saha accompanied him on the tabla and Jyoti Goho gave harmonium support.

It was ITC-SRA scholar Sucheta Ganguly’s recital on Wednesday May 8, 2005. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Arun Bhaduri, she began with khayals in Raga Multani followed by Raga Desh. She concluded with a composition in Raga Bharavi. Swapan Mukherjee accompanied her on the tabla and Rupashree Bhattacharya provided harmonium support.

ITC-SRA scholar Nilanjana Roy was the artiste on Wednesday June 15, 2005. She is a disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar. She presented khayals in Raga Kamod, followed by Raga Gaur Malhar. Aslam Khan provided tabla accompaniment while ITC-SRA scholar Gaurab Chatterjee played the harmonium.

June 22, 2005 was ITC-SRA scholar Omkar Dadarkar’s evening. About to embark on his career as a performer, it was his last performance as a scholar of the Academy. Before his performance, ITC-SRA Guru Smt Girija Devi gave him a certificate for the completion of his tenure as a scholar while ITC-SRA Executive Director Mr. Amit Mukerjee read out a pledge that he took. He then began his recital with khayals in Raga Miyan Malhar. He also sang khayals in Ragas Gaud Malhar and Desh. Tabla accompaniment was provided by Gopal Mishra while Rupashree Bhattacharya provided harmonium support.

Veteran sarodiya Pandit Kamal Mullick of the Maihar Gharana performed on Wednesday June 29, 2005. Initiated by the late Sangeetacharya Shyam Gangopadhyay, he was also guided later by Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. His gayaki talim was, to a great extent, reinforced by renowned khayal singer Pandit Narayan Rao Joshi of the Kirana Gharana. Introduced by ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta, he began with alap, jod, vilambit and drut gat and jhala in Raga Chhayanat. He also played gats in Ragas Desh and Megh.

Musical Wednesdays in May

Young Shatavisha Mukherjee was the first artiste of the evening on May 4, 2005. She is an ITC-SRA scholar training under ITC-SRA Guru Ulhas Kashalkar. She presented compositions in Raga Hameer and Raga Gaud Malhar. Gopal Mishra accompanied her on the tabla and Jyoti Goho on the harmonium. The next artiste was sarodiya Dwaipayan Roy, student of Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta. He played alap, jod, jhala and gats in Raga Kamod. Gopal Mishra accompanied him on the tabla.

ITC-SRA scholar Shirshendu Mukherjee was centre-stage on May 11, 2005. He is a disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty. He began his recital with khayals in Raga Bihag, followed by Raga Bageshree. He concluded with a thumri in Manjh Khamaj. Shri Chandrabhan accompanied him on the tabla while Rupashree Bhattacharya played the harmonium.

On May 18, 2005, ITC-SRA scholar Hrishikesh Gangurde, disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, presented a vocal recital. He began with khayals in Raga Puriya Dhanashree and then sang Raga Bageshree. He was given support by Md Aslam Khan on the tabla and Jyoti Goho on the harmonium.

Mita Nag, daughter of Pandit Manilal Nag, presented a sitar recital on May 25, 2005. An exemplar of the sixth generation of the Nag family of instrumentalists of the Vishnupur Gharana of Bengal, Mita is carrying on the family tradition with élan. She played alap, jod, gats and jhala in Raga Bhimpalasee. She also presented Raga Megh and concluded with a Ragamala. Samar Saha ably accompanied her on the tabla.

Musical Wednesdays in April

A performance was organized on April 13, 2005, in memory of Late Pandit A. Kanan, erstwhile guru of ITC-SRA. It featured a performance by his disciple Aniruddha Bhattacharya, ex-scholar ITC-SRA. Aniruddha began with Raga Multani and later presented Ragas Hameer and Shahana. Samar Saha accompanied him on the tabla while Hironmoy Mitra played the harmonium.

Late Maestro Pandit Mallikarjun Mansoor’s contribution to the world of vocal music was acknowledged on April 20, 2005. The evening featured a listening session of his recordings, which included Ragas Kabir Bhairav, Sawani, Raisa Kanada and Nat Bihag. Listeners were also treated to excerpts of an interview of the maestro recorded earlier at ITC Sangeet Research Academy.

Mumbai resident Neela Bhagwat, senior vocalist of the Gwalior Gharana, performed on April 27, 2005. She began with compositions in Raga Poorvi. She also presented a tappa in Raga Kafi, a hori in Raga Bihag and an ashtapadi in Raga Hameer. She concluded with a tarana in Raga Yaman.

Musical Wednesdays in March

March 2, 2005, brought a visitor who now lives in USA, Anupama Bhagwat. She is a disciple of Pandit Bimalendu Mukherjee, a doyen of the famous Imdadkhani Gharana. She began with alap, jod, vilambit gat and drut gat and jhala in Raga Yaman. Ananda Gopal Bandopadhyay provided interesting tabla accompaniment. She concluded her recital with a thumri in Raga Khamaj.

March 9, 2005, was ITC-SRA scholar Sandip Bhattacharya’s evening. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan, of the Kirana Gharana, All India Radio has recently upgraded him from ‘B’ to ‘B high’. He presented vilambit and drut khayals in Raga Yaman and then Raga Desh. He concluded with a bhajan. Gopal Mishra accompanied him on the tabla and ITC SRA scholar Gourab Chatterjee played the harmonium.

March 16, 2005 saw ITC-SRA scholar Ruchira Kale presenting vocal music. A disciple of ITC-SRA Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, she presented vilambit and drut compositions in Ragas Yaman and Bageshree. She concluded with a dadra in Mishra Gara.

The auditorium was packed to capacity with latecomers sitting outside and listening to ITC-SRA’s Guru Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar’s performance on March 23, 2005. Slated as a concert of ‘Ragas of the Season’, Ulhasji gave the audience mush food for thought. He began with Raga Basant, followed by Malkauns Bahar, Basanti Kedar and finally Bhairavi. Accompanying him were Gopal Mishra on the tabla and Jyoti Goho on the harmonium.

Musical Wednesdays in February

In the last few months, ITC Sangeet Research Academy has had several visitors. In fact, every Wednesday in February featured a performance by a visiting musician. On February 2, 2005, sarodiya Debashis Bhattacharya presented alap, jod, vilambit gat, drut gat and jhala in Raga Shyam Kalyan, followed by Raga Kedar. He is a torchbearer of the Shahjahanpur Gharana that evolved from Ustad Murad Ali Khan He now learns from Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta. He concluded his performance with a dhun in Raga Piloo. Gopal Mishra ably accompanied him on the tabla.

On February 9, 2005, the first artiste was ITC-SRA scholar Sumana Gupta, disciple of Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty. She began with khayals in Raga Abhogi, followed by Raga Piloo. She was accompanied by Shri Chandrabhan on the tabla and ITC-SRA scholar Gourab Chatterjee on the harmonium. The next artiste, N.Uday Kumar, came from Hyderabad. Since 1998, he has been learning from Ustad Shabbir Nisar, son of Tabla Nawaz Ustad Shaik Dawood Saheb of the Farukhabad gharana. Uday has been living in Ustad Shabbir Nisar’s home, continuing his education in the guru-shishya parampara tradition. He presented teentala and was accompanied on the harmonium by ITC-SRA scholar Sandip Bhattacharya.

February 16, 2005 featured a sitar recital by Shri Ganesh Mohan. He is presently under the guidance of Pandit Arvind Parikh. Pandit Gopal Nag, Pandit Manilal Nag and Pandit Ajay Sinha Ray have also trained him. He began with alap, jod, vilambit gat, drut gat and jhala in Raga Sindhura. He concluded with Raga Shyam Kalyan. Gopal Mishra provided tabla accompaniment.

Kumar Mardur performed on February 23, 2005. Hailing from the rich traditions of Dharwad, he received his training from his father Pandit Somanath Mardur, a renowned Hindustani classical vocalist of the Kirana Gharana and a senior disciple of Padmabhushan Dr. Basavraj Rajguru. He presented khayals in Ragas Puriya Dhanashree, Kedara and Desh. Swapan Mukherjee accompanied him on the tabla while Jyoti Goho provided harmonium support.