Gharana

Tabla

The Tabla is well-established today as one of the most versatile drums that exist in the world. People across the globe are often awestruck by how such a small pair of drums has the power to sway audiences in huge auditoriums into frenzied excitement. Yet it is not just this excitement which gives the Tabla its position in the world of music. It is also its highly evolved subject -matter, manifold aesthetic possibilities and tonal variation that make it unparalleled in the world of Rhythm.

It was sometime in the 50s that the Tabla and the Tabla player travelled to the western world. It gained global popularity through its exposure as the accompanying drum for sarod and sitar maestros like Ali Akbar Khan and Ravi Shankar. Great maestros of the Tabla like Chaturlal, Alla Rakha, Shankar Ghosh, Kanai Dutt, Mahapurush Mishra and others mesmerised the audiences abroad with their phenomenal skills. In Northern India, the tabla had already reigned as the most popular drum for over a century. Within India, its only competitor was the southern-Indian drum called the Mridangam. However, due to stylistic differences and differences in the genre of performances associated with the two, the paths of these two drums hardly overlapped until the 1950s.

Traditionally, there have been 5 gharanas or schools of Tabla playing Delhi, Lucknow, Ajrada, Benaras and Farukhabad. They are all believed to be off-shoots of the original gharana - Delhi Gharana. With time influences of each gharana seeped into others as the Tabla players travelled more and more and recordings became more widely available. The study of the Tabla, one of the world's most fascinating drums is at once intriguing and exciting. More and more people from across the globe travel to India to learn this great tradition. For the first time, through ACE Open, students now have a chance to learn the art of performance of the Tabla via the net under one of the greatest Tabla maestros of our times - Bickram Ghosh

The Farukhabad Gharana is part of the purbi baj, or "eastern style," which is characterized by an extensive use of resonant strokes played on the sur of the daya. The playing style of the Farukhabad gharana was developed from the strongly dance-influenced style of the Lucknow gharana, and contains similarities to its strong, resonant sounds.

The repertoire is replete with a varied and intriguing compositions, makes great use of open resonant baya strokes, and contains many unique stroke combinations. There is a greater wealth and emphasis of gats, chalan, and real compositions than on qaida or peshkar. There is a prominent use of certain bols, such as dheredhere, takataka.

Lineage

The lineage is unbroken today; another disciple of Haji Vilayat Ali Khan, claimed to be his son or son-in-law, Nanhe Khan preserved and passed the tradition through his son Masit Khan, who gave it to his son Keramatullah Khan, followed by his son Sabir Khan, and finally to his son Arif Khan. Ustad Sabir Khan and his son Arif perform actively and continue the tradition of their forefathers in Calcutta.

Other important performers and teachers of the Farukhabad gharana include Ustad Masit Khan, Ustad Ahmedjan Thirakwa, Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, Ustad Keramatullah Khan, Pandit Shankar Ghosh, Pt. Anindo Chatterjee, Ustad Sabir Khan etc.

It is important to note that the Great Guru Pandit Gyan Prakash Ghosh went through great pains to host and learn from great Ustads like Ustad Masit Khan in the earlier half of the 20th century. His perseverance resulted in him becoming a repository of material from the Farukhabad gharana. He was highly educated and incredibly artistically endowed. He is considered to be the prime force behind creating many of the doyens of Farukhabad who hailed from Calcutta. So much so that his students like to call themselves followers of the Calcutta gharana as through Pandit Gyan Prakash Ghosh, the material from Farukhabad was intelligently interpreted and applied to create a style which though hailing from Farukhabad, had evolved on a very unique form of Tabla playing.

Bickram Ghosh - The Maestro

"Bickram Ghosh is probably the greatest tabla player to ever perform at the Chicago Symphony Hall - Chicago Tribune"

World famous percussionist and New-age percussion star, Bickram Ghosh is ranked amongst the great Tabla players of our country. Equally brilliant within traditional as well as experimental genres, Bickram has carved out a unique niche for himself in his diverse avataars as classical musician, new - age artiste and composer. Son and discipleof the great Tabla maestro- Pandit Shankar Ghosh(see below), Bickram has also learnt the nuances of Carnatic percussion from Pandit S. Sekhar.

He performed for over a decade with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar who honed his skills in the art of accompaniment. He has over 50 recordings as Soloist, Composer and Collaborator; He has performed in almost every top venue in the world, among which are The Royal Albert Hall, London; The Kennedy Centre, Washington D.C; The Palais De Beaux Arts, Brussels; Carnegie Hall, New York and many others.

His performances have met with accolades in international circuits and his many associations with top western musicians such as George Harrison ( Bickram performed on the title track of Harrison's posthumously released album 'Brainwashed'), Mstilav Rostropovich, Khaled Kouen, Yosi Levi and others has placed him in the top rung of Indian musicians in the International arena. Bickram played on Grammy award winning album 'Full Circle' along with Ravi Shankar.He has played on a number of Grammy nominated albums as well.

Some of the other great maestros who Bickram has performed with are Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Pandits Rajan and Sajan Mishra, Dr Balamurlikrishna, Kadri Gopalnath, Prof T.N.Krishnan, U. Srinivas and many many others.

Bickram is also one of the most prominent composers of new-age fusion music today. His Band Rhythmscape is extremely popular across the globe as one of India's best classical-fusion acts. Bickram has scored the music for 12 films including Sooni Taraporewala's Little Zizou (National award winner 2009), Devaki, Lost and Found(National award winner - documentary,2009) and others.

Bickram Ghosh's style of playing follows the Calcutta Gharana (a sixth gharana which has developed much later from Calcutta )which stems from the Farukhabad gharana.

For more information on Bickram Ghosh go to www.bickramghosh.com

Pandit Shankar Ghosh

Hailed as one of the all-time greats of Indian Classical Music, Pandit Shankar Ghosh has, for more than four decades now, regaled audiences all over the world with his unique "baaj" of Tabla playing. Universally regarded as an innovative genius, he has, besides, performing with the greatest of master musicians of this century, added a whole new dimension to the art of solo Tabla playing. His contribution to the Tabla and to the development of the Calcutta gharana is immeasurable. His many compositions have become an intrinsic part of classical Tabla playing.

Listing the great artistes that Shankarji has accompanied over the last forty odd years would read like a who's who list of the Indian Classical Music world. It would be enough to say that there was no area of our music, be it instrumental, vocal or dance that Shankarji did not excel in and which was not enriched by his keen sense of artistry.

Throughout his career he has been bestowed with awards galore. The latest to hold pride of place are The Sangeet Natak Academy award, The ITC award and the Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan award. Shankarji has innumerable recordings available worldwide. Of late he has ventured into composing music for stage productions as well as theme albums. Finally, Shankarji has secured a place for himself among the greatest Guru's of all time through his wide influence as a teacher of Tabla all over the world. This is amply exampled by the sheer number of students of his that are top rung tabaliyas today. Pandit Shankar Ghosh teaches in five institutions in India, France , Germany, China and South Africa.