Hi all! I've been looking for places to post my link so folks will
find my free music. If this isn't an appropriate forum for that let
me know. You can find my music here
http://taylorhayward.org/freemusic.htm . I made it royalty free and
it's currently being used in about three-hundred videos on the web.
Enjoy!

Taylor Hayward

My sister Ms. Sucharita Gupta is an acclaimed classical singer of the Banaras Gharana. She is a versatile singer with a focus on Thumris. She is an All India Radio "A" grade artist and performs regularly at various cities in India. I am exploring ways of getting her here in the bay area to introduce music lovers here to her music. Please let me know if there is a way to make this happen through Basant Bahar. here is a sample of her videos - http://sucharitagupta.com/video.htm

Please drop me a note at drahul2@gmail.com, if this is of interest to the members.

Through www.alaap-agragharana.com we have published some very rare alaaps of a highly emotive style ,sung by an unknown singer who never sang in public and died in 1982 . The songs have received wonderful reactions from listeners , like
• This is the most amazing treasure I have heard on the net. My appreciation is beyond words.
• The songs brought tears to my eyes . What more can I say !
• Fantastic . This is like going back to the sources . Ad fontem.
• I have never heard anything so soulful and touching .
• This is pure passion at work ,unconcerned with the compulsions of performing on stage .

Perhaps most importantly , many have felt that the singer was conversing with God .
The site is completely non-commercial and allows free download of all the songs. It has absolutely no commercial intentions . The only aim is to propagate the rare style and earn posthumous recognition for this remarkable singer .
We request you to kindly visit the site and ,if you find the songs to be special ,kindly post your views on the guest book .
We trust you will not be disappointed

Hi Folks,

while poking around the net for classical music pieces to check out I ended up on the wikipedia page for Raga Jog. On it there was a link to a video of a man I'd never heard of named Ram Narayan who was playing at a concert in Iran back in 1970. I loved it and have watched it over and over. Can anyone recommend any other sarangi artists and particular recordings to get exposed to? Thank you.

-Christopher

(hopefully this is the proper forum for this question)

Basant Bahar pays homage to the memory of Pandit Dinkar who passed away on January 24, 2010

Leading singer, composer and Guru of Agra-Bhatkhande tradition Pt. Dinkar Kaikini was fondly known as “Dinarang”. He was 82.

The vocalist was a multi-faceted musician. In the old texts such singers were called "Chaumukhi Gavaiyya" which means a versatile singer. An excellent performer, he was a dedicated teacher and a creative composer all rolled into one. He did not sing just Khayal music but was also an excellent singer of Thumris, and had the ability to move one to tears with his voice throw (pukar).

In India, he has been awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the Tansen Award, Sangeet Ratna (Swar Sadhana Samitee, Mumbai), Sharangdev Award (Sur Singar Samsad), ITC Award, just to name a few. He has toured internationally, including the US, UK, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia and Europe. He has served as an ambassador for Hindustani music, not only as a performing musician, but also as an educator. In 1974, he was selected by the Government of India to represent the Hindustani classical music tradition in the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and East Germany, where he gave performances and lecture demonstrations at Universities and cultural centers

Basant Bahar pays homage to the memory of Shri Bimalendu Mukherjee, an exponent of the renowned Imdadkhani Gharana.

Acharya Bimalendu Mukherjee was born in an art-loving Bengali family at Chinsurah West Bengal, on 2nd January 1925. His grandfather and father were both civil surgeons in Bengal Medical Service.He took voluntary retirement in 1983 as General Manager (Mines) and Additional Director CRMM SAIL, when the Govt. of Madhya Pradesh selected him as the Vice-Chancellor of Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyalaya, Khairagarh, and Madhya Pradesh. He completed his first term as Vice Chancellor in 1985. He was given the same responsibility in 1988.

Bimalendu Mukherjee is primarily a Sitarist, though he is proficient in almost all traditional Indian instruments like RudraVeena, Saraswati Veena, Surbahar, Sursingar, Mandrabahar, Dilruba, Esraj, Tar Shehnai, Sarod and Pakhavaj. He is equally adept in vocal music.

His contributions to the family of stringed musical instruments are the unique "Aditya Veena" - named after his son Budhaditya - and the "Bijoy Veena" - named after his grandson Bijoyaditya. He has also revived the 'Ektantri' single-stringed Veena - an instrument referred to by Sharangdev - and the Sur Kanan. Besides, he has experimented, modified and improved the structure and tonal quality of many stringed instruments like the Sitar , Sarod, Surbahar, Rudraveena, Esraj, Guitar, Dilruba and the Veena.

Pandit Mukherjee has been constantly experimenting with the Western and Eastern philosophy of medical treatment. He has created Raga Anandamayee in That Kafi. His son has recorded the Raga in a novel way on the Sitar . This recording, released with the title "Anandamayee" (full of bliss and happiness), has been successfully experimented on patients of hypertension.

Pandit Mukherjee was a member of various organizations such as The International Society of Music Education, AL-MAESTRO and Hindustani Classical Music. He was formerly Additional Director, CRMM SAIL; General Manager M and Q, Bhilai Steel Plant; Vice Chancellor, Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyalaya, Khairagarh (M.P.) (1983-85 and 1988- 91). He also figures in Five Hundred Leaders Of Influence 1997 American Biographical Institute (U.S.A.); Reference Asia 5; Biography International 1991; Learned Asia 1; India Who's Who 1993-94; International Who's Who of Intellectuals 1997 and International Biographical Center Cambridge (U.K.) 

Pandit Mukherjee was also the guru of local Bay Area artist, Smt. Anupama Bhagwat.