Budhaditya Mukherjee
Encyclopedia
Budhaditya Mukherjee is a Hindustani classical sitar
and surbahar
player of the Imdadkhani Gharana
(school).
He was taught by his father Bimalendu Mukherjee
from the age of 5, and started making a name for himself at a young age. In 1970, he won two national-level music competitions, and soon after was famously endorsed in glowing terms first by film maker Satyajit Ray
and then South India
n veena great Balachander
, who proclaimed him "sitar artist of the century". In 1975, Budhaditya became a grade A artist with All India Radio
(he was promoted to top grade in 1986). Since then, he has become an established sitarist, known for virtuosity, speed and precision.
Mukherjee has toured the world extensively, giving concerts in over 25 countries, and from 1983 and 1995, respectively, taught from time to time at the Istituto Interculturale di Studi Musicali Comparati in Venice
and the Rotterdam
Conservatory. He has also recorded widely, and at the age of 47, his discography spanned exactly 47 CDs, LPs and cassettes. In 1995, he started recording on the surbahar
(bass sitar), first as a two-part series (Brilliance of Sound) for Beethoven Records in Kolkata (ragas Yaman and Marwa), then raga Komal re Asavari for RPG
/HMV
on Tribute to My Father, My Guru (STCS 850362). In 2003, he was the first Indian classical musician to have an enhanced CD
published: Thumriyan (RCD-2224), on Bengali
label Rhyme Records in Kansas, containing raga
s Piloo and Bhairavi.
His son, Bijoyaditya, was born in 1984, and started training with Bimalendu and Budhaditya at the age of 5.
Budhaditya Mukherjee also holds a degree in metallurgical engineering.
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
and surbahar
Surbahar
Surbahar , sometimes known as bass sitar, is a plucked string instrument used in the Hindustani classical music of North India. It is closely related to sitar, but it has a lower tone. Depending on the instrument's size, it is usually pitched two to five whole steps below the standard sitar, but...
player of the Imdadkhani Gharana
Imdadkhani gharana
The Imdadkhani gharana is a North Indian school of sitar and surbahar music, stemming from the very ancient Gwalior gharana. It was created by Imdad Khan , and is also known as the Etawah gharana, after a village outside Agra where Imdad lived...
(school).
He was taught by his father Bimalendu Mukherjee
Bimalendu Mukherjee
Bimalendu Mukherjee is world-renowned Hindustani classical sitar player, and a teacher of the Imdadkhani gharana ,...
from the age of 5, and started making a name for himself at a young age. In 1970, he won two national-level music competitions, and soon after was famously endorsed in glowing terms first by film maker Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...
and then South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
n veena great Balachander
S. Balachander
Sundaram Balachander , born in Madras was an Indian self-taught veena player.-Early life:His ancestors were from the Tanjore area, which is acclaimed as the seat of culture and fine arts in South India. His grandfather is Rao Saheb Vaidyanatha Iyer. He was born to V. Sundaram Iyer and Parvathi...
, who proclaimed him "sitar artist of the century". In 1975, Budhaditya became a grade A artist with All India Radio
All India Radio
All India Radio , officially known since 1956 as Akashvani , is the radio broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati. Established in 1936, it is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster. All India Radio is one of the largest radio networks...
(he was promoted to top grade in 1986). Since then, he has become an established sitarist, known for virtuosity, speed and precision.
Mukherjee has toured the world extensively, giving concerts in over 25 countries, and from 1983 and 1995, respectively, taught from time to time at the Istituto Interculturale di Studi Musicali Comparati in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
and the Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
Conservatory. He has also recorded widely, and at the age of 47, his discography spanned exactly 47 CDs, LPs and cassettes. In 1995, he started recording on the surbahar
Surbahar
Surbahar , sometimes known as bass sitar, is a plucked string instrument used in the Hindustani classical music of North India. It is closely related to sitar, but it has a lower tone. Depending on the instrument's size, it is usually pitched two to five whole steps below the standard sitar, but...
(bass sitar), first as a two-part series (Brilliance of Sound) for Beethoven Records in Kolkata (ragas Yaman and Marwa), then raga Komal re Asavari for RPG
RPG Group
The RPG Group one of India's largest industrial conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai, India. It was founded by RP Goenka in 1979, and initially encompassed Phillips Carbon Black, Asian Cables, Agarpara Jute and Murphy India...
/HMV
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
on Tribute to My Father, My Guru (STCS 850362). In 2003, he was the first Indian classical musician to have an enhanced CD
Enhanced CD
Enhanced CD, also known as CD Extra and CD Plus, is a certification mark of the Recording Industry Association of America for various technologies that combine audio and computer data for use in both Compact Disc and CD-ROM players....
published: Thumriyan (RCD-2224), on Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
label Rhyme Records in Kansas, containing raga
Raga
A raga is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.It is a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is made...
s Piloo and Bhairavi.
His son, Bijoyaditya, was born in 1984, and started training with Bimalendu and Budhaditya at the age of 5.
Budhaditya Mukherjee also holds a degree in metallurgical engineering.
External links
- Official web site: www.budhaditya.com