Ravi Shankar: A Profile By MOHAN NADKARNI The Illustrated Weekly of India, September 25, 1955 RAVI SHANKAR, the famed sitar-player, ranks among the great musicians of today who have devoted their lives to the revival and enrichment of our traditional music with fresh inspiration. Scion of an aristocratic Bengali Brahmin family, 35-years-old Ravi Shankar is the youngest brother of the world-famous dancer, Uday Shankar....
By MOHAN NADKARNI The Economic Times, December 24, 1989 What is it that makes most of us hail Ali Akbar Khan as the greatest living instrumental maestro in the Hindustani tradition? What is it that makes his music so individualistic? Having heard the maestro for more than three decades, I am firmly convinced that it is the subjective element of intuition or, rather the...
Ali Akbar Khan excels By MOHAN NADKARNI The Economic Times, January 29, 1989 Sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan, acclaimed as the greatest instrumental virtuoso of this generation, is also known to be extremely moody and temperamental. If he is in the right mood, there are occasions when he has taken his audiences to transcendental heights. The packed audience that had gathered to listen to...
Sublime Genius – Pannalal Ghosh His music was sublime. His commitment to his art, total. Pannalal Ghosh was the finest flautist in Hindustani music. A visionary who evolved a new style of playing the instrument and imparted a classical cachet to it as well. MOHAN NADKARNI profiles the maestro whose dazzling artistry opened new horizons before his premature death 27 years ago. The Illustrated Weekly...
Indian Odyssey – Ken Zuckerman In the West, which has more than its fair share of Indian classical music aficionados, there are also a few dedicated practitioners of the art Noteworthy among them being Ken Zuckerman, the American-born disciple of sarod player Ali Akbar Khan. How did the westerner come to develop an interest in Indian sangeet? And what kind of response does he...
Musical Odyssey – D’Amel YESTERDAY’S PEOPLE / MOHAN NADKARNI Within the confines of near anonymity, members of the broadcasting organisation in India have produced some memorable work. D Ame’l could easily have become rich and famous on the concert circuit, yet the talented musician chose to pursue excellence at All India Radio. Mohan Nadkarni profiles the unassuming artiste who has just won the Sangeet...