Strains of a legacy

Pandit Prateek Chaudhuri, of the famed Senia gharana, says he is just following a tradition known for its purity of music

May 10, 2012 08:28 pm | Updated July 11, 2016 04:11 pm IST - Kochi

Sitar maestro Prateek Chaudhuri

Sitar maestro Prateek Chaudhuri

A musician evolves and establishes an identity. His voice or the musical instrument he plays acquires a definitive identity, a musical footprint. This is exactly what separates Pandit Prateek Chaudhuri from the rest of the young generation of sitar players. Listen to him once and you will be able to identify his music from a whole lot of noise.

Prateek Chaudhuri belongs to the ninth generation of sitarists of the famed Senia gharana. Trained by his father Padmabhushan Debu Chaudhuri and his father's guru Ustad Mushtaq Ali Khan, he is the latest link in the illustrious lineage that begins from Masit Sen, widely recognised as the man who gave the sitar an identity and one who turned it into an individual concert instrument. And he is a sixth generation descendant of Mian Tansen.

In a telephone chat with The Hindu MetroPlus , Prateek felt that this link was an honour and also a huge responsibility.

“I follow a tradition that is known for its faithfulness towards maintaining the purity of raga. It is heavily influenced by the Dhrupad style of singing, especially in the application of notes. The ‘murkis' and khatkas' are avoided. The purity of the notes is retained. I have held on to the tradition of playing on a sitar with 17 frets, when 18, 19 and 20 frets are the order of the day.”

Prateek's compositions are noted for its purity and precise illustration of the ragas they are based on. Serenity in the ‘alaap' and his amazing speed in the ‘tanas' provide an exhilarating contrast. He has the ability to play almost 19 notes in a second with some rare ‘tanas' or running-note passages in quick tempo.

Almost two years back Prateek played at a private concert in the city. And recently he joined Pandit Ramesh Narayan in a jugalbandi before a packed audience at Palakkad.

“Jugalbandis are okay if you are able to gel with the other artiste. But I prefer solo concerts. Of course, I enjoyed joining the 80 musicians on the famous Swarovsky Music Wattens Orchestra of Austria, and have performed jugalbandis, crossover and fusion with many acclaimed musicians. I also lead ‘Sitar Ecstasy,' a sitar fusion group, ‘Sitars of India,' an ensemble and ‘Soul of India,' an orchestra that encompasses a variety of music genres. But my heart is always for a solo concert.”

Prateek performs solo at JTPac in a concert titled ‘Indian Strings' on May 12 at 7 p.m. For details contact 9349528107 or 9349528057.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.