Ravi Shakar: 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012

[SageTree]

I don't have a lot to say about it.
A great person died today.

Ravi Shakar: Ravi Shankar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here are some links and songs, of him.

Sitar legend Ravi Shankar dies at 92 - CNN.com
Remembering Ravi Shankar (1920-2012) CBC Music - Free Streaming Radio, Videos, Songs, Concerts & Playlists

Share anything you'd like.

This is one of my favourite clips. Even though he doesn't play so much, the way he talks about the music he plays, focus on the tabla... wait for it... the full speed demo is sweet!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Joyk_EMtzn0


Random:

[youtube]4gWCiLexilY[/youtube]
Ravi Shankar on the Dick Cavett Show - YouTube

[youtube]w3Hhd0yyO98[/youtube]
Ravi Shankar - Tenth Decade in Concert: Live In Escondido (Yaman Kalyan) - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Joyk_EMtzn0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KXk_8_8oLY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAV1rdUyjCM


:namaste

 

[MysticSang'ha]

He was brilliant. May he rest in peace. :candle:

 

[ChristineES]

I've got some Ravi Shankar in my music collection. Although I originally started listening to him because I am a George Harrison fan, I quickly discovered his genius. Sitar music is really nice to listen to, also. RIP Ravi Shankar.

 

[BSM1]

My Grandmother stole my first Ravi Shankar album in the '80s. Namaste, brother. You opened new worlds for some of us.

 

[Jainarayan]

I have a few of his works and collections. He was the last of the trio of artists: Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Ustad Alla Rakha and himself. Anoushka must be devastated. They were the apples of each others' eyes.

 

[BSM1]

Let's hope Anoushka carries on the family legacy.

 

[Jainarayan]

Anoushka has a number of awards (including Grammys, I think) under her sari. Music runs in that family. Norah Jones is her half-sister by their father. Ali Akbar Khan was the ex-b-i-l of Ravi Shankar by Ali Akbar Khan's sister Anapurna Devi, herself an accomplished surbahar (bass sitar) player. Their father Ustad Allaudin Khan was the musical guru of both Ravi and Ali Akbar. He founded several musical schools, and was so highly regarded and respected that he once threw a tabla tuning hammer at the maharaja (and got away with it).

 

[Ferne]

I saw him in concert a few years ago and he was superb. It's a shame to hear he's passed on.

 

[Levite]

I hope his next life is awesome: he sure has earned it. He will be missed. What a tremendous talent!

 

[atanu]

I seem unable to write even a few words. As a tribute I could only do this much.
---------------------------------------------

Anoushka writes about her Bapi (father), Ravi Shankar

http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=18&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=CAP&mydateHid=13-12-2012&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI
-----------------------------------
THE SPEAKING TREE
Bapi, A Joker And A Musician

Anoushka Shankar

Humour is an integral part of who Bapi (Pt Ravi Shankar) is. People who know him and have spent time with him talk about his wit, his jokes and his upbeat nature almost more than they discuss his music.Its hard for him to stay serious for too long, whether hes in concert, at home, in the car or on a plane. Hes always making up riddles for us to solve, punning on words, making faces or telling a (probably unprintable) funny story.

Onstage, Bapi is one of the few people i know, especially in the Indian classical music world, who is comfortable letting go and having a laugh.When he announces the pieces that he is going to play, he often enjoys a joke with his audience, making them laugh as well. Sometimes he introduces me as his mother instead of his daughter!

We played an incredible concert in Chicago, and towards the end Bapi threw in Yankee Doodle and Jingle Bells in various rhythms, sending the audience into peals of laughter. Its nice because it gives the audience a chance to glimpse who he is behind the musician and adds another dimension to their concert-going experience.

Undercurrents of humour are also present between him and the rest of us onstage. If there is one important thing that Bapi has taught me about performing, its that it has to be fun. His true personality doesnt disappear within some persona when hes onstage. Undoubtedly,something comes over him and he becomes bigger, brighter and deeper, but he doesnt lose his impishness in the bargain. Sometimes he makes his sitar wail like a cat, or imitate a baby crying out in the audience. He repeats a phrase several times, indicating that he has no control over his hand, until he finally slaps his instrument in playful anger. He gives me little winks behind his instrument, or reminds us all of some inside joke. I love that he makes it comfortable enough for us all to laugh together onstage.

In a way i think his sense of humour helps him to get through difficult times. Ill never forget one time he was in hospital several years ago. He was in a lot of pain and under heavy medication a state in which most people can barely make conversation. Yet there he was, telling us that the monitor attached to his finger looked like a little ET as he made it wiggle a Hello at us. He made us laugh by impersonating a nurse with a strange accent,and told me a couple of jokes he had made up. It struck me how much of a survivor he is,and how deep in his nature it is to enjoy lifes every moment For everything that Bapi is genius, creator, pioneer, humanitarian, instrumentalist, orator and messiah, he doesnt take himself too seriously, and in a way i think that is the greatest quality he has. He's still a fun person who likes to watch corny television, tell a cheesy joke, or watch my sister and i prance around the living room performing various dance forms. He's not too full of himself to enjoy other people making fun of him. He holds an audience as captive with his words as he does with his notes. He's a cool guy, a fun man! And i am as proud to be a daughter of this Joker as i am of the Musician.

From Bapi: The Love of My Life by Anoushka Shankar.

 

[Jainarayan]

Extremely sweet tribute.

At the Concert for Bangladesh after the group (he, Ali Akbar Khan, Alla Rakha and Kamala Chakravarty on tampura) finished tuning, the audience broke out into applause. He said "Thank you, if you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you'll enjoy the playing more... thank you". The audience broke out into applause and laughter.

 

[YmirGF]

At the Concert for Bangladesh after the group (he, Ali Akbar Khan, Alla Rakha and Kamala Chakravarty on tampura) finished tuning, the audience broke out into applause. He said "Thank you, if you appreciate the tuning so much, I hope you'll enjoy the playing more... thank you". The audience broke out into applause and laughter.

Hehehe, yes, Ravi did have a great sense of humor.

I was fortunate to see Ravi Shankar and his ensemble play for about 90 minutes in Vancouver in 1974, as the warm up act for George Harrison. I still have my ticket stub.

It was an incredible 90 minutes, so much so, that Harrison was a bit of a disappointment. See you soon, Ravi.