Imagine a quaint little music shop tucked in one corner of Rashbehari Avenue making world class musical instruments that served stalwarts of the music world from the hip-hop Beatles to sitar maestro Ravi Shankar! And still continue to serve in an age when we perceive
Indubala, the mellifluous singer and performer, hailed from the infamous red-light alleys of Rambagan in North Calcutta. But that was no deterrent to her achieving stardom as a brilliant singer, early in her teens. The velvety texture of her voice, amazing pitch range and melodious
If you push the ‘past’ button on a Musical Time Machine, tracing Renaissance in Bengali songs, you will probably realize musical creations of Bengal were a confluence of global themes, since the time when Rabindranath Tagore composed Puranoshei diner katha. That button was again pressed
When century-old terracotta temples come alive with the rhythms and rendition of classical maestros belting out the charm of Bengal’s only classical gharana, then all roads lead to the temple town of Bishnupur. One-of-its-kind, Bishnupur Music Festival starts this year on 10th January and continues
With Durga Puja imminent, and the music of the dhaak beginning to play in our hearts, most of us think that this is the only time of year when we get to hear these incredibly evocative beats. But is it really? Is the dhaak finally
Here’s a chance for music buffs to create and share their own unique audio-visual sound-tracks of Kolkata, mixing music samples performed by artists at well-known landmarks across the city on a platform brought none other than British Council. Mix the City Kolkata, is an interactive
‘Kaape kaape amar hiya kaape’.. I remember vividly the tune of my childhood days, the first song I heard of Mohiner Ghoraguli. I was just seven and was completely incapable of comprehending the lyrics, deciphering the significance or the essence of the song and feel
• There was an era in Bengal Music, when songs had rich lyrics. Are lyrics still important? My world of songs is centred around my father Salil Chowdhury’s music. I mostly listen to Western and Indian classical music. However, the last time I heard Bengali songs
Did you know the New York Times in 1984 had dubbed Purna Das Baul as India’s Bob Dylan! Well, if Lalon Fakir is the Baul King, Purna Das took baul songs to an international platform, by bringing in a western element to it. Purna Das Baul
This story dates back to the time when our very own bidrohi kobi, Nazrul Islam had taken up the responsibility of composing music for Bengali films. His first work started with 'Dhruba'. The proprietor of Madan Company, Grami Sahib signed a contract with him for