It is quite rare when a music student gets an opportunity not only to listen to a great master musician but also to learn and interact with him/her in close proximity. Over past several years, LearnQuest Academy of Music has created these opportunities for the music community inviting stalwart musicians such as Dr. Prabha Atre, Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta, Ustad Shahid Parvez, Gundecha Brothers, Malladi Brothers and T. M. Krishna. This week the academy is presenting another such opportunity to music lovers and students by organizing a concert and a series of three workshops by the legendary sarod maestro Pt. Buddhadev Dasgupta. The concert is a part of a summer music festival which LearnQuest and AAPARNA are jointly presenting on Saturday, July 18th in Marshall Middle School, Billerica, MA.
A recipient of the prestigious Padmabhushan award, Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta is a gem in the world of Indian classical music. He is recognized worldwide as one of the finest masters of the classical musical tradition of North India and is one of the best known cultural ambassadors of India.
Pandit Dasgupta’s Gharana (musical lineage) is accepted as the foremost living representative of Ustad Murad Ali Khan. His music today is a synthesis of this Gharana intertwined with the nuances of Rampur Seniya Gharana perfected by his Guru, Pt. Radhika Mohan Maitra. Like his illustrious Guru, he is a seeker of wonders and surprises within the boundaries of tradition. Having struck a perfect balance between gayaki and tantrakari, Buddhadev Ji, through his thorough raga conception, pin pointed note accuracy, rabab based bol patterns and fluent ekhara taans, of which he is the pioneer, has added a new dimension to his parent style of playing the sarod. Music, he believes, is the only medium capable of guiding the mankind to live in harmony with self.
My journey of learning Hindustani music began at age of six in Nagpur, India as a student of vocal music and later Sitar. But my serious lessons of sitar began when when I met my guru Shri Puspen Dey a few years back, who is a direct disciple of Pt. Budhhadev Dasgupta. He teaching style is the same as his Guru Pt. Budhhadev Dasgupta. Since there was small Sarod at LearnQuest Academy where I used to take lessons, Puspen Da asked me if my daughter wanted to give it a try as she was learning Hindustani vocal but was not very keen to sing in front of people. So, I asked her and she agreed to try it. Being a string instrument without frets, Sarod is a difficult instrument to play. Puspen Da spent many hours and years with her. She cried many times but she persevered, and after a few years of training and practice my daughter and I are able to perform at local classical music events.
During our lessons with Puspen Da, I heard lot of stories about Pt. Budhhadev Dasgupta and his teaching style. Pt. Budhhadev Dashputa is famous for Ekaara pattern and bol taans are used in such a varied way and tastefully which is rare to hear these days. I feel there is so much to learn and not enough time to devote. We are looking forward to a great concert by Pt. Budhhadev Dasgupta followed by a series of three workshops by him. It will be a great opportunity to listen to him and try to learn from him.
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