SUBROTO ROY CHOWDHURY Raga Shri Shri Part 4 Part I Alaap Part II Jod Part III Jhala Part IV Gats, in Jhaptal and Teental Raga Jhinjoti Part I Part II Total time: 60.57 SUBROTO ROY CHOWDHURY was born in Calcutta on January 29, 1943. Subroto started learning sitar on May 12th, 1956, under the able tutelage of his first guru Shri Nirmal Chakravarty. Schooled in an English missionary instition and musically groomed in the classical Vedic tradition. Subroto combines the traditional approach of the East with the Western spirit of enquiry and rational thought. An ever widening canvas of viewpoints and the duality of his psyche has led to the enlightenement of the man and his music. Inclined towards authentic traditional classical music forms. Subroto showed an affinity for the Gurus of yesteryears, rather than the established artists of the time. This inclination led to his close association with Birendra Kishore Roychowdhury and Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan. Deeply moved by the Dhrupad tradition, he delved into history to return to classicism under the dominant influence of Birendra Kishore Roychowdhury. The Alaap was that of Subroto`s first love like that of his Guru. This brought him close to the famous senior Dagar brothers and he became the disciple of the legendary Ustad Nasir Aminuddin Khan Dagar. His association with Radhika Mohan Maitra started since 1962 and his musical training under the former included Masidkhani Gats, bolbanis, mid-tempo jods and Bandishi alaap. Subroto got a glimpse of the "Pachao Ke Sitar" (the sitar baj of Western India) during his brief stint with Bimal Mukherjee. Due to his affinity towards his grand-Gurus rather than his Gurus, his style is similar to the 19th Century sitar style. The smooth Veena Meed Ang and the Bolbanis highlighting the hand are Subroto`s forte. He was introduced by the late Dr. Suresh Chandra Chakravorty at his debut concert in North Calcutta in the year 1964. Later he won various awards at the state level. National level, Interuniversity and All India Radio music competitions. In the 70`s he started visiting Europe where he played for the Radio France, BBC, Radio Television Belgium, the North Sea Jazz Festival in Hague, and the Leverkusen Jazz Festival. Today, Subroto has performed over 300 concerts all over Europe and the USA, travelling from India to Spain to Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Portugal, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and the Atlantic shores - spreading the message of universal peace and humanity with his music. SAIBAL CHATTERJEE is one of the most promising tabla players in the country. Tutored under the living legend Jnan Prakash Ghosh, he combines youthful vigour and exuberence with acute aesthetic sense. UMA ROYCHOWDHURY was groomed in classical music from a very tender age and is also a talented vocalist. Jhinjoti - The Music I: A very colourful "Aochar", or medium paced, ornamental Alaap is followed by a Masid Khani gat of sixteen beats, beginning on the twelfth beat as per tradition (the Masid Khani baz was popular in Western India just before the time of Reza Khan). II: The Aochar is followed by the languid vistaars in slow tempo. This is followed by fast tempo tans at eight times the basic beat. This is followed by a brilliant traditional composition in fast teental. This composition belongs to the Sarod gharana of Niamatulla Khan. The Jhinjoti ends with a dynamic jhala where the musician's skill and aesthetic sense are put to test. The Jhala is in pure Enayet Khan tradition. Ragas and Talas It is the unique unwritten notation system that sets Indian classical music apart from it`s Occidental counterpart. A concrete notation system is absent, and one`s ear and aesthetic sense are considered the vital yardstick. Gurus have handed down a complex system of Ragas and Talas - replete with tenets and rules from generation to generation. This is known as the "Guru-Shishaya-parampara" a unique concept of musical training. Music has come down to us from ancient scriptures, by legend, by ear and by demonstrations of the Gurus. Refined through centuries, it remains highly creative due to the degree of improvisation in performance. Every Raga is thus a melodic seed that derives it's flavour from extra-musical associations, such as variations in moods, time of the day and season, i.e. Nature. The Sitar An offspring of the Tri-tantri Veena, the sitar is the most popular string instrument in India. It is carved from seasoned gourd and teakwood that serve as one of the world`s most ancient natural amplifiers. The gourd is the base of the instrument and amplify the sound. Six orseven strings are plucked on a long broad fingerboard, with twenty moveable metal frets. There are also thirteen sympathetically resonating strings below, to contribute to the unique tone of the instrument. The tabla is a double drum set very popular in India. The right hand drum is tuned to the tonic, dominant or subdominant. The left hand drum acts as the bass drum - known as the Baya. It is capable of many tones which can be varied by the degree of pressure from the base of the left palm. The Tamboura The Tamboura is a fretless instrument with five strings. It is carved out of seasonal wood and requires aesthetic sense and great skill to be played effectively. It provides the continuous hypnotic drone in the background, that is essentialto Hindustani Classical music. Our price: 13,45 EUR incl. 19.0% MWSt. / VAT