Classical musician Shyamala G. Bhave, who was well versed in both the Hindustani and the Carnatic styles and earned the title ‘Ubhayagana Vidushi’, passed away in Bengaluru on Friday morning. She was 79.
Born on March 14, 1941, in Bengaluru to a musical family, she was one of the early practitioners of the Hindustani style in the city and also taught hundreds of students at her school, Saraswati Sangeet Vidyalaya at Seshadripuram.
“Last week, she was admitted to a private hospital as her BP and sugar levels were erratic and she also had breathing difficulties. For the last three days she was home. This morning she breathed her last listening to music,” said one of her senior students, Vageesh Bhat, who is secretary of the vidyalaya.
Ms. Bhave was the daughter of Pandit Govind Vittal Bhave, who sang and played multiple instruments, and vocalist Lakshmi Bhave.
Trained from an early age, she gave her first performance at 12, said Mr. Bhat. She performed, taught and held positions in institutions related to the arts for decades. She served at the Karnataka Sangeeta Nrithya Academy for two terms from 1997 to 2001. She had also composed music for some films, including the first Sanskrit film by G.V. Iyer, Adi Shankaracharya, and India’s first Sanskrit serial Kadambari .
Hindustani singer Sangeeta Katti, said, “I have been associated with Shyamala Bhave for three decades, and she was one of the foremost vocalists to propagate classical melodies in Bengaluru.”
The last rites of the musician were performed at Friday evening at Chamarajapet crematorium.
