Tithankar Banerjee - Sitar
Samir Chatterjee - Tabla
Join us for an on-line performance of Sitar maestro Tithankar Banerjee.accompanied by Chhandayan’s founder Samir Chatterjee.
This performance was originally scheduled for January 15, 2022
Tirthankar Banerjee
Tirthankar Banerjee was born in an educated and culturally interested family in Kolkata (Calcutta). From his childhood, he developed an interest in music in general, and in the sitar in particular. Throughout his youth, he showed a capacity for playing a wide variety of instruments, but chose finally to concentrate on the sitar.
Tirthankar’s musical education has been sourced in the rich traditions of the Maihar gharana. In 1978, he became a disciple of Pt. Deepak Choudhury, an eminent sitarist and one of the most noted disciples of Pt. Ravi Shankar. At the same time, he received guidance from Pt. Shyamadas Chakraborty, also a disciple of Pt. Ravi Shankar. In 1991, Tirthankar became a disciple of Pt. Ajay Sinha Roy.
The rich tradition of Tirthankar’s gharana has created a fertile ground for his own natural instincts, musical talent and technical expertise, and has allowed him to flourish as a musician. He has performed in several concerts all over India – including the India International Centre (New Delhi), the National Centre for Performing Arts (Mumbai), SurSagar Society (Kolkata), Swarganga (Kolkata), Visva Bharati (Shantiniketan), and the 3 rd Choudhury House Music Conference – and has been warmly appreciated by music lovers. Apart from these solo recitals, he was one of the lead instrumentalists in an orchestra conducted by Pt. Shankar Ghosh for Doordarshan (TV) Kolkata. He has also composed and conducted orchestra, composed music for films, TV, theatres, and puppet theatres. In 1997, he was also invited to conduct a Master’s class in sitar by the radio channel ‘GYAN BANI’ of Netaji Subhas Bose Open University, which was broadcast through the All India Radio.
Some career highlights:
Tirthankar Banerjee was born in an educated and culturally interested family in Kolkata (Calcutta). From his childhood, he developed an interest in music in general, and in the sitar in particular. Throughout his youth, he showed a capacity for playing a wide variety of instruments, but chose finally to concentrate on the sitar.
Tirthankar’s musical education has been sourced in the rich traditions of the Maihar gharana. In 1978, he became a disciple of Pt. Deepak Choudhury, an eminent sitarist and one of the most noted disciples of Pt. Ravi Shankar. At the same time, he received guidance from Pt. Shyamadas Chakraborty, also a disciple of Pt. Ravi Shankar. In 1991, Tirthankar became a disciple of Pt. Ajay Sinha Roy.
The rich tradition of Tirthankar’s gharana has created a fertile ground for his own natural instincts, musical talent and technical expertise, and has allowed him to flourish as a musician. He has performed in several concerts all over India – including the India International Centre (New Delhi), the National Centre for Performing Arts (Mumbai), SurSagar Society (Kolkata), Swarganga (Kolkata), Visva Bharati (Shantiniketan), and the 3 rd Choudhury House Music Conference – and has been warmly appreciated by music lovers. Apart from these solo recitals, he was one of the lead instrumentalists in an orchestra conducted by Pt. Shankar Ghosh for Doordarshan (TV) Kolkata. He has also composed and conducted orchestra, composed music for films, TV, theatres, and puppet theatres. In 1997, he was also invited to conduct a Master’s class in sitar by the radio channel ‘GYAN BANI’ of Netaji Subhas Bose Open University, which was broadcast through the All India Radio.
Some career highlights –
Tirthankar completed his diploma of Sangeet Visharad (1989-90) in 1 st division with Distinction in practical from Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh.
Tirthankar has toured in the UK, the UAE, and in Australia, and has performed in several concerts, including the Fairbridge International Music Festival in Perth.
Tirthankar performs regularly for All India Radio and Doordarshan.
Tirthankar conducts workshops on a regular basis.
Tirthankar also works as a regular music critic for the Bengali daily newspaper ‘Bartaman’.
Samir Chatterjee
Samir Chatterjee is a virtuoso Tabla player. He travels widely across the world throughout the year performing in numerous festivals as a soloist or with other outstanding musicians from Indian and western traditions. He performed at the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo, Norway in December 2007. He has also performed at the UN General Assembly several times. His compositions are widely acclaimed as well as his writings.
Samir can be heard on numerous recordings featuring as soloist, accompanying many of India’s greatest musicians and in collaboration with western musicians of outstanding caliber. Samir lives in New Jersey and has been a catalyst in the fusion of Indian and Western music in the New York City metro area. He is the Founding President of Chhandayan, a not-for-profit organization promoting and preserving Indian music and culture. Samir teaches at several prestigious institutions. He has authored three books on Indian music; ‘A Study of Tabla’, ‘Music of India’ and Those Forty Days. Samir played a significant role in the musical revival in Afghanistan. He is the recipient of several awards such as the Sunshine Award, Jadu Bhatta Award and Acharya Varistha Award.