Br ravi shankar biography

Ravi Shankar was an Indian musician and composer best known for his success in popularizing the sitar. Shankar grew up studying music and toured as a member of his brother's dance troupe. Shankar died in California on in , at age Born on April 7, , in Varanasi also known as Benares , India, Ravi Shankar came into the world as a Brahmin, the highest class of Indians according to the caste system.

His city of birth is a well-known destination for Hindu pilgrims and was once described by Mark Twain as "older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend and look[ing] twice as old as all of them put together. Shankar lived in Varanasi until the age of 10, when he accompanied his older brother, Uday, to Paris.

Ravi shankar, daughter

Uday was a member of a dance troupe called the Compagnie de Danse Musique Hindous Company of Hindu Dance Music , and the younger Shankar spent his adolescence hearing the rhythms and watching the traditional dances of his culture. Looking back on the time he spent with his brother's dance troupe, Ravi Shankar once recalled, "I keenly listened to our music and observed the reaction of audiences on hearing it.

This critical analysis helped me to decide what we should give to Western audiences to make them really respect and appreciate Indian music. At the same time, Shankar was absorbing the musical traditions of the West and attending Parisian schools. This mixture of Indian and Western influences would be apparent in his later compositions, and would help him cultivate the respect and appreciation from Westerners that he sought for Indian music.

At a music conference in , Shankar met guru and multi-instrumentalist Allaudin Khan, who became his mentor and musical guide for many years.