The one centesimal birthday celebrations of Sangeetacharya Amiya Ranjan Bandyopadhyay marked a momentous event in the historical past of Kolkata’s classical music. For a long time, his college students have organised a particular live performance as a part of his birthday celebrations, and every year he has unfailingly elevated its attraction with his khayal renditions. The Vivekananda Hall of the Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture was packed with admirers of the veteran musician. Clad in a dhoti-kurta, the centenarian took the stage with the identical confidence that has outlined his presence over the years. His singing belied his age.
Beginning with a bada-khayal in Bihag set to Ektaal, he introduced out the poignancy of the raag with outstanding finesse. The efficiency additionally reminded listeners of the significance of melodic aesthetics — an concept that types the essence of his e book Sangeete Saundarya-Chinta, written in Bengali. He adopted it up with Drut Teentaal. The badhat phrases had been quick however awe-inspiring. Without any repetition, he highlighted myriad shades of the raag and stringed them lovingly with delicate meends. Similar had been the taans that took place in lightning pace.
Interestingly, aside from well-known names in the area of music corresponding to Ajoy Chakrabarty, Anindo Chatterjee and Samar Saha, a number of younger music fans had been additionally current. After a serene guru-vandana by Ramanuj Dasgupta, the viewers was handled to an attractive session by which Shantanu Bandyopadhyay (Amiya babu’s son) and a group of senior musicians recalled many sides of the maestro’s life and artwork. Particularly hanging is his deep admiration for Ustad Amir Khan’s emotive but intellectually rigorous strategy to music-making. They additionally spoke about how he’s a stickler for perfection and his deep sense of dedication.
Despite hailing from a household of dhrupad singers, Amiya babu, son of Satyakinkar Bandyopadhyay, selected to pursue khayal. Apparently, there can be full silence in his home when he would sit to do his day by day riyaaz. Though rooted in custom, Amiya babu likes to maneuver with the occasions. A fast learner, he embraced fashionable expertise and to this present day information his morning riyaaz periods, which he listens to later to analyse and refine the nuances. He additionally continues to show greater than 50 college students each on-line and in-person.
Amiya Ranjan Bandyopadhyay hails from a household of dhrupad singers
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Special Arrangement
As a school member and later as the Head of the Department of Music at Rabindra Bharati University, he by no means missed a possibility to identify and encourage promising expertise. This trait endeared him to Vijay Kichlu, the founder-director of the Sangeet Research Academy (SRA). At Kichlu’s request, Amiya babu agreed to function a visiting member of SRA’s knowledgeable committee to evaluate the progress of its students.
During one such gradation take a look at, he listened to a younger Rashid Khan. So astounded was he by the boy’s brilliance that he discovered himself unable to put in writing something in the assessment e book. When requested to file a minimum of a transient comment, he responded, “He is already a star musician. How can I assess him?”
On one other event, he predicted that Chandana Chakraborty was a expertise to be careful for. Today, she is a crucial member of Ajoy Chakrabarty’s musical household.
The night echoed the very qualities he had lengthy nurtured in others — now revealed by his personal artistry. Accompanied by his favorite tabla artiste Samar Saha and a host of disciples on the harmonium, tanpuras and vocals, the sangeetacharya sat in sukhasana like a yogi.
