Pandit Shyamal Bose

Pandit Shyamal Bose was one of the most prolific Tabla players of the recent times, loved and respected for a very high level of sensitivity and sensibility as revealed though his music. It has also been to find musicians with such demeanor and human character. Although he remained mostly in low profile, more engaged in nurturing the deeper perspectives into the realm of his music, his seminal appearances in public performances and media have left some serious impact on the minds of the people exposed to his music.   

His family originally hailed from Jessore, now in Bangaldesh. He was born in Kolkata, India on July 17th, 1934 in a musical family. His father Pt. Anath Nath Bose was one of the most prominent musical figures in the nation. He was known for his equal proficiency in singing and tabla. He studied tabla under Pandit Lakshmi Prasad Mishra of Benares gharana and Ustad Firoz Khan of Punjab gharana. His grooming in singing was under Ustad Faiaz Khan, the doyen of Agra gharana. Anath Nath Bose had the unique capability of singing in male and female voices. So, in a performance he would render the classical pieces in a male voice and the semi-classical pieces in a fine female voice. He was one of the central figures in the musical scene of Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta), not only as a musician but also for his patronage to music and musicians. He also served Raja Chakradhar Singh of Raigarh as his court musician. 

Born in such a musical atmosphere, Shyamal Bose was naturally drawn towards music and soon developed serious interest in its pursuit. He showed equal talent and interest in singing and tabla, and he started with singing. At some point during his adolescence, tabla was chosen to be ultimate pursuit and he was taken to Pt. Gyanprakash Ghosh for his grooming. His life-time allegiance to his Guru became exemplary.

Shyamal Bose served at the Kolkata station of Indian national radio (All India Radio) for several years. He became the favorite accompanist to many musicians. He has numerous recordings to his credit. He toured quite extensively within India and abroad. He also led several groups of musicians on tour. Towards the end of his life he suffered from a paralytic attack and almost lost all motor acitivies on his left hand. But, this could not keep him away from music. He continued to teach on his own, as part of institutions, such as the Sangeet Research Academy of Music in Kolkata. Many of his disciples are established musicians. The list of name includes (in alphabetical order) Anup Dutta (Khairagarh, MP), Anup Ghosh (Delhi), Arup Das (Italy), Dilip Mukherjee (Kolkata), Mukul Chakraborty (Kolkata), Samir Chatterjee (USA), Saurav Bose (Kolkata), Shyam Bose (Barrackpore, WB), Somnath Mukherjee (Delhi), Swapan Bhattacharya (Seerampore, WB), His earnestness in all musical matters him loved and respected in the music world.

He breathed his last in Kolkata on September 8th, 2003.