Press Release:
Jaipur, 8 April: The renowned Indian Sitar player, Pandit Shubhendra Rao performed at the ‘Music In The Park’ today at the Central Park in Jaipur. He was accompanied by the renowned Tabla player, Ustad Akram Khan.
Pandit Shubhendra performed Raag –‘ Puriya Dhanashree’ with Aalap , Jod, Jhalaa. This he began with ‘Roopak Taal’ and the ‘Dhrut Ektaal’. Later, he mesmerized the audience with Raag ‘Mishra Pilu’ inVilambit Drut Teen Tal.
The event was organized by the Department of Tourism, Government of Rajasthan along with the Jaipur Development Authority and Spic Macay.
It is to be recalled Shubhendra Rao is a composer and sitar player who is ranked amongst the top soloists of India. His music is “an experience that is not aimed at titillating the senses, but to seize the soul.” A protege of Ravi Shankar, he is acknowledged by critics and connoisseurs alike as a worthy successor to his teacher’s tradition. He was born in Mysore city in the state of Karnataka. From a very young age, he showed great talent for music. His father, N R Rama Rao (who was one of the earliest and closest disciples of Ravi Shankar), initiated him into the intricacies of the sitar. His mother, Nagaratna, is a trained Saraswati Veena player.
Akram Khan hails from the famous Ajrada Gharana one of the main Tabla Gharanas in the field of music. Since his childhood he has been trained under the guidance of Ustad Mohd Shafi Khan, his great grandfather as well as his father Ustad Hashmat Ali Khan and the great Ustad Niazu Khan .