Professor Devabrata Chaudhuri and Pandit Anant Lal

Melody for Celebration

Raga Bhairavi
 

This melody can be played at any time.

Duration: about 45 min

Melody for Celebration

Raga Sura Malhara
 

This melody can be played at any time.

Duration: about 45 min

Professor Chaudhuri has been performing for more than 45 years, and is one of the greatest sitar maestros of India. He is the world's leading expert in Maharishi Gandharva Veda music. Maharishi has awarded him the title of 'Sangeet Chudamani' ­ one who has reached perfection in music. Besides teaching at the University of Delhi, Professor Chaudhuri is currently Dean of the Colleges of Gandharva Veda at Maharishi Vedic University in Holland, U.S.A., and India, and is Visiting Professor at Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa, U.S.A.
Professor Chaudhuri is the author of two books on music and has published many papers world-wide.

Anant Lal was born in a family with the musical heritage of Benares. The shehnai has been played in his family for over 250 years. Pandit Anant Lal has gained recognition in India and abroad for his outstanding performances. He has been honored twice with the Sangeet Natak Award given by the President of India.

Both artists are accompanied by Ashis Sengupta on tabla, by Daya Shankar on shehnai, and by Pratik Chaudhuri on sitar.

Sitar

The sitar has two sound bodies and movable frets. Under the bridges there are twenty resonating strings that give the instrument its typical nasal sound, which is full of overtones. Because the main strings run only on the left part of the fret, they can be pulled to the right side allowing one to glide through the finest subtleties in pitch within an interval of up to three full notes. The sitar is considered the quintessential Indian instrument. Shehnai master Pandit

Shehnai

The shehnai is made from a conical wooden reed with seven to nine finger holes and a funnel of metal. In the head part, which is made of copper, there is a thin pipe on which a double-reed-leaf, made from straw or reed, is fastened by a silk thread. The full length of the reed swings freely in the mouth-hole. Traditionally the shehnai is played as a duet one person plays the melody, the other person maintains the basic note.