Ravi Shankar

Biography





Born:
April 7, 1920

Ravi Shankar- Sitar

Ravi Shankar, the legendary sitarist and
composer is India's most esteemed musical Ambassador and a singular
phenomenon in the classical music worlds of East and West. As a
performer, composer, teacher and writer, he has done more for Indian
music than any other musician. He is well known for his pioneering work
in bringing Indian music to the West. This however, he did only after
long years of dedicated study under his illustrious guru Baba Allaudin
Khan and after making a name for himself in India.

Always ahead
of his time, Ravi Shankar has written two concertos for sitar and
orchestra, violin-sitar compositions for Yehudi Menuhin and himself,
music for flute virtuoso Jean Pierre Rampal, music for Hosan Yamamoto,
master of the Shakuhachi and Musumi Miyashita - Koto virtuoso, and
collaborated with Phillip Glass (Passages). George Harrison produced
and participated in two record albums, “Shankar Family & Friends”
and “Festival of India” composed by Ravi Shankar. He has composed
extensively for films and Ballets in India, Canada, Europe and the
United States, including Charly, Gandhi and Apu Trilogy. Ravi Shankar
is an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and
is a member of the United Nations International Rostrum of composers.
He has received many awards and honors from his own country and from
all over the world, including fourteen doctorates, the Bharat Ratna,
the Padma Vibhushan, Desikottam, the Magsaysay Award from Manila, two
Grammy's, the Fukuoka grand Prize from Japan, the Crystal award from
Davos, with the title 'Global Ambassador' to name some. In 1986 he was
nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha, India's upper house of
Parliament. His recording “Tana Mana”, released on the private Music
label in 1987, brought Mr. Shankar's music into the “New age” with its
unique method of combining traditional instruments with electronics.

In
the period of the awakening of the younger generation in the mid 60's,
Ravi Shankar gave three memorable concerts - Monterey Pop Festival,
Concert for Bangla Desh and The Woodstock Festival. Mr. Shankar has
several disciples whichare now very successful concert artists and
composers.

In 1989, he toured Europe and India with Zubin
Mehta and the European Youth Orchestra. Shankar also composed and
performed in a musical theater piece, Ghanashyam, in Britain in 1989
and India in 1991, and collaborated with Phillip Glass on Passages in
1990. Even into the new millennium, he continued to write, perform, and
tour.

The Ravi Shankar Foundation in California and The Ravi
Shankar Centre in New Delhi (also known as RIMPA) have been established
to collect, document and archive the vast works of Ravi Shankar, which
are fragmented all over the world. They are also committed to posterity
the artistic and creative energy that this unique musician has still to
offer. It is a dedication to awaken the consciousness of people to help
towards the preservation of the diversity of cultures and richness of
their art and the aesthetic and ancient traditions of the past and
present. The dream is to support the freedom of artistic creativity and
to help in the collaboration and exploration of world music, performing
arts and work for universal Peace and Harmony through music.

The
core of Ravi Shankar’s music has been the spirituality, which instantly
touches the listener. It is 76 years when this son of India went on
foreign soil and since then this musical messiah has worked tirelessly
to take the great music of his country to every corner of the earth. In
1985 when Ravi Shankar received his doctorate from Cal Arts, the
citation read,

“ Ravi Shankar musician to the world �” whose rare
genius has opened the ears and minds of millions to the wondrous
aesthetic of India’s ancient musical tradition �” adored musical
ambassador whose incomparable artistry has created bridges of
understanding among the peoples of the earth.” - from www.allaboutjazz.com