Ravi Shankar
A master of the sitar as well as a famous experimenter with its classical forms, Ravi Shankar was probably the world's best-known Indian musician. First recorded in 1936, he had a rich career that spanned nine decades. His mentoring of the Beatles during the height of their fame in the 1960s helped bring him to the attention of Western audiences, but Shankar's influence obviously extends far beyond Western pop, and he spent much of his career bridging the gap between musical cultures.
Rabindra Shankar Chowdery was born on April 7, 1920, in Varanasi, India, into a well-off orthodox Brahmin family. His father, ShyÆm Shankar, was employed as a diwan (minister) by the Maharajah of Jhalawar. By the age of 13, Ravi Shankar was going along on every tour of his brother Uday Shankar's Compaigne de Danse et Musique Hindou (Company of Hindu Dance and Music). At the All-Bengali Music Conference in December 1934, he met the multi-instrumentalist Allauddin Khan. Precisely when Allauddin Khan was born is uncertain. People hazard dates in the 1860s around 1862, but in later years he himself gave his age haphazardly. He would transform many musicians' lives, but he had an incalculable effect on Ali Akbar (his son), Annapurna Devi (his daughter), and Shankar himself. Allauddin Khan joined Uday's troupe as its principal soloist around 1935-1936.
In 1938, Shankar gave up a potential career as a dancer and went to study with Allauddin Khan in Maihar. In 1939, he began giving public recitals and came out of training at the end of 1944. Until 1948, he based himself in Bombay and gave programs all over India. He toured and wrote for films and ballet. Around this time he began his recording career with a small session for HMV (India). Work for All India Radio followed, as music director from February 1949 to January 1956 in New Delhi. Concurrently, his international star was on the rise. In 1954, he performed in the Soviet Union. In 1956, he played his debut solo concerts in Western Europe and the U.S. Within a decade he would be the most famous Indian musician on the planet. Within two decades he became probably the most famous Indian alive. His English-language autobiography, My Music, My Life (1969), is still one of the best general introductions to Hindustani music. It would be hard to over-estimate his influence in late 20th century Western music. His disciples included George Harrison and Philip Glass.
Shankar was not one-dimensional. Apart from pursuing a career as a classical performer, he also experimented outside this field. For this reason he has attracted criticism from purists. Some of this, especially during the Beatles era, undoubtedly had an element of jealousy to it, and some was certainly warranted, because Shankar did take many chances. In fact, that was one of the things that kept his music exciting. To use a cricketing image -- baseball would be wholly inappropriate -- Shankar's batting average remained high throughout a long and illustrious career. In later life, he spent a great deal of time in the U.S. at his home in California, and continued to give spellbinding live performances well into the new century. However, his final concert took place in Bangalore, southwest India, in February 2012, where he shared the stage with his daughter, Anoushka. Sadly, following a long period of ill health, Shankar passed away at a San Diego hospital on December 11, 2012, aged 92. A pair of albums appeared later that year, Living Room Sessions: Part 1 and a performance of Shankar's only symphony composition, simply called Symphony, done by the London Philharmonic Orchestra with David Murphy.
© Ken Hunt /TiVo
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Nine Decades, Vol. 6: Dutch-India Airwaves
Classical - Released by East Meets West Music on 24 Apr 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Full Circle: Carnegie Hall 2000 (Live)
World - Released by Warner Classics (Parlophone) on 1 Jan 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ravi Shankar Milestones: A Primer to the Maestro's Music
Classical - Released by East Meets West Music on 31 May 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Ravi Shankar Collection: In New York (Remastered)
World - Released by Warner Classics (Parlophone) on 1 Jan 1968
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Homage To Mahatma Gandhi (Instrumental)
Ravi Shankar, Ustad Alla Rakha
Indian Music - Released by Universal Music India Pvt Ltd. on 1 Jan 1982
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ragas Hameer & Gara (Instrumental)
Ravi Shankar, Ustad Alla Rakha
Indian Music - Released by Universal Music India Pvt Ltd. on 1 Jan 1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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The Unforgettable Ravi Shankar
Indian Music - Released by Old but Gold Music on 22 Jan 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Inside The Kremlin
Indian Music - Released by Private Music on 16 Jan 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Golden Star Collection
World - Released by Rav Can Play India Records on 30 Sep 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ravi Shankar - Concert For Peace
World - Released by Moment Records on 1 Jan 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Ultimate Star Collection
World - Released by Karshan Vira Records on 26 Apr 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Platinum - Pandit Ravi Shankar
World - Released by Music Today on 1 Jan 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Megh Malhar Vol. 1
Ravi Shankar, Mallikarjun Mansur
World - Released by Music Today on 10 Jan 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Three Ragas
World - Released by Lumi Entertainment on 12 May 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Deyyamtho Sahajeevanam (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Ravi Shankar, Rambabu Gosala, Rama Rao Matumuru
World - Released by Saregama on 20 Jun 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Raga Jogeshwari (Instrumental)
Indian Music - Released by Universal Music India Pvt Ltd. on 1 Jan 1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Three Ragas (Original Album 1956) (Original Album 1956)
Indian Music - Released by Music of India on 1 Jan 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Indian's Master Musician (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -