Ashutosh Bhattacharya (17 March 1917 – 8 February 2004) was a noted Indian classical musician of

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the Indian classical music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent's northern regions. It may also be called North Indian classical music or ''Uttar Bhartiya shastriya sangeet''. The term ''shastriya sangeet'' ...

from

Varanasi Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...

, who was a

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

player and music educator, as well as a practicing

Ayurvedic Ayurveda (; ) is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. It is heavily practised throughout India and Nepal, where as much as 80% of the population report using ayurveda. The theory and practice of ayur ...

doctor. In 1966, he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship the highest honour conferred by

Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English language, English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India. It is an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture (India) ...

, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.

Early life and background

Born in a Bengali family in

(Benaras), Uttar Pradesh, Bhattacharya grew up in the family of

doctors, where both his father and grandfather practiced Ayurvedic medicine. However, at a young age he showed musical inclination and at age 8 started learning '' pakhawaj'' from Pandit Ram Nath Mishra. After a few years of training, he switched to learning tabla from Pandit Kanthe Maharaj, noted tabla player of the

Benares gharana Benares gharānā (Hindi: बनारस घराना) is one of the six most common styles of playing of the Indian tabla. History The Benares tabla gharana was developed a little over 200 years ago by Pandit Ram Sahai (1780–1826). At ...

, and uncle of

Kishan Maharaj Pandit Kishan Maharaj (3 September 1923 – 4 May 2008) was an Indian tabla player who belonged to the Benares gharana of Hindustani classical music. Early life and background Maharaj was born to a Brahmin family of hereditary musicians in Kab ...

Career

He started performing at the age of 21, when in 1937, he accompanied

sarod The sarod is a stringed instrument, used in Hindustani music on the Indian subcontinent. Along with the sitar, it is among the most popular and prominent instruments. It is known for a deep, weighty, introspective sound, in contrast with the sweet ...

maestro

Allauddin Khan Ustad Allauddin Khan (8 October 1862 – 6 September 1972), was a Bengalis, Bengali sarod player and multi-instrumentalist, composer and one of the most notable music teachers of the 20th century in Indian classical music. For a generation many ...

at the music concert in

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

. In the coming years, he accompanied leading musicians like, Pt.

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitar, sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Hin ...

, Ustad

Ali Akbar Khan Ali Akbar Khan (14 April 192218 June 2009) was an Indian Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Trained as a classical musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, ...

and Ustad

Vilayat Khan Ustad Vilayat Khan (28 August 1928 – 13 March 2004) was an Indian classical sitar player, considered by many to be the greatest sitarist of his age. Along with Imdad Khan, Enayat Khan, and Imrat Khan, he is credited with the creation a ...

. Besides his musical career, he also practiced Ayurvedic medicine at his clinic in Varanasi, and taught students. He died on 9 February 2004 in Varanasi, after a brief illness, at the age of 86. His son, Debabrata Bhattacharya, is a tabla player.

References

Bibliography

External links

Ashu Babu Memorial School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhattacharya, Ashutosh 1917 births 2004 deaths Hindustani instrumentalists Tabla players 20th-century Indian male classical singers Musicians from Varanasi Indian music educators Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship Ayurvedacharyas 20th-century Indian drummers

Early life and background

Career

See also

References

Bibliography

External links