M. Venkatesh Kumar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | July 1, 1953 |
| Occupation | singer |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Awards |
|
| Musical career | |
| Origin | Bellary, Karnataka, India |
| Genres | Hindustani classical music, Dasara Pada, devotional songs |
Pandit M. Venkatesh Kumar (born July 1, 1953) is an Indian Hindustani vocalist. He is best known for his rendition of devotional songs composed by Swami Haridas and Kanakadasa. Kumar belongs to the Kirana and Gwalior Gharana.
Kumar was born in Lakshmipura in the Bellary region of northern Karnataka. [2] [3] Kumar's late father Huleppa was a Janapada folk singer and leather puppeteer. In 1968, when he was 15 years old, Venkatesh was taken by his mothers brother, father in law Nadoja Belagallu Veeranna to the Veereshwara Punyashrama in Gadag, run by the Veerashaiva saint and Hindustani musician Puttaraj Gawai. For the next 12 years, he lived at the ashram and learned Hindustani singing in the Gwalior and Kirana styles under Gawai. Kumar blends these styles in his presentations, though he admits to influences beyond these gharanas, chief among them being Bade Ghulam Ali Khan of the Patiala gharana. [4] His guru was also trained in Carnatic music, and as a result, there are traces of Carnatic elements in Pandit Kumar's music, especially in his sargam patterns. [2]
Kumar got his first break in 1993, 14 years after he left the ashram, when he received an invitation from Bhimsen Joshi to perform at the Sawai Gandharva Sangeet Mahotsav in Pune. [2] However, he had to wait almost ten more years before he became a regular on the national festival circuit. Since then, he has been featured in many national musical programs, and has been an "A top" grade artist of All India Radio since 1988.
In devotional music, Kumar is most acclaimed for his Kannada vachana and dasara pada singing. [4] He has recorded multiple devotional and classical CD albums.
Kumar began his teaching career at Vijay Mahantesh Arts College near Gadag, where he taught for one-and-a-half years. He has also taught in Mukunda Kripa in Udupi.
He received a postgraduate degree in music from Gandharva Mahavidyalaya. [4] He authored the textbook of music prescribed for the examination conducted by the government of Karnataka. [5]
Kumar taught at the University College of Music, Dharwad, for 33 years. [6] This commitment regularly required him to turn down concerts, but he refused to quit the job that offered him stability at a time when concerts were hard to come by. He retired in 2015. [4]
Kumar has received awards and titles including:
Pandit Bhimsen Gururaj Joshi, also known by the honorific prefix Pandit, was one of the greatest Indian vocalists from Karnataka in the Hindustani classical tradition. He is known for the khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music. Joshi belongs to the Kirana gharana tradition of Hindustani Classical Music. He is noted for his concerts, and between 1964 and 1982 Joshi toured Afghanistan, Italy, France, Canada and USA. He was the first musician from India whose concerts were advertised through posters in New York City. Joshi was instrumental in organising the Sawai Gandharva Music Festival annually, as homage to his guru, Sawai Gandharva.
Gangubai Hangal was an Indian singer of the khayal genre of Hindustani classical music from Karnataka, who was known for her deep and powerful voice. Hangal belonged to the Kirana gharana.
Ramachandra Kundgolkar Saunshi, popularly known as Sawai Gandharva and Ram-bhau, was a popular Hindustani Classical vocalist from Karnataka. He was a master in the genre of Kirana Gharana style. He was the first and foremost disciple of Ustad Abdul Karim Khan, and guru of Bharat Ratna laureate Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.
Ustad Abdul Karim Khan was an Indian classical singer and, along with his cousin Abdul Wahid Khan, the founder of the Kirana gharana of classical music.
The Kirana Gharana is a Hindustani music apprenticeship tradition (gharana) made popular by Bande Ali Khan in the 19th Century and his cousins Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan. Evolved from the instrumental and vocal Gauharbani dhrupad lineages of medieval music maestros Nayak Gopal, Nayak Dhondu, and Nayak Bhanu. Later, this tradition came to be reputed for khayal, thumri, dadra, ghazal, bhajan, abhang, and natya sangeet. This gharana is known for producing acclaimed musicians like Sawai Gandharva, Sureshbabu Mane, Hirabai Barodekar, Amir Khan, Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi, Roshanara Begum, Mohammed Rafi, Prabha Atre, Kaivalya Kumar Gurav, Anand Bhate, Sanhita Nandi, and Jayateerth Mevundi. Consequently, this gharana developed a reputation for its distinctly sweet, devotional, and intense vocalism.
Kundgol also spelled as Kundagola is a panchayat town in Dharwad district in the Indian state of Karnataka.
Pandit Basavraj Rajguru was a leading Indian classical vocalist in the Kirana gharana.
Pandit Ganapati Bhat, popularly known as Ganapati Bhat Hasanagi, is an Indian Hindustani classical vocalist. He belongs to Kirana -Gwalior Gharana. He is a resident guru at Dr. Gangubai Hangal Gurukul Trust in Hubli. He was born and brought up in Hasanagi, a small village in the state of Karnataka in India.
Jayashree R. Patanekar is a Hindustani classical vocalist. She has received training in Gwalior, Jaipur and Kirana gharana. She has received training from the great maestro Gajananrao Joshi.
Sumati Mutatkar was an Indian classical music vocalist and musicologist from the Agra gharana of Hindustani classical music, and a Professor of Department of Music in University of Delhi.
PanditPuttaraj Gawayigalu was an Indian musician in the Hindustani classical tradition, a scholar who authored more than 80 books in Kannada, Sanskrit and Hindi, a music teacher and a social servant. A member of the Gwalior Gharana (school), he is renowned for his ability to play many instruments such as the veena, the tabla, mridangam, violin etc., as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music (bhajans) vachanas.A famous vocalist both in Hindustani and Carnatic Music. He is the recipient of the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour, awarded in 2010.
Manjusha Kulkarni-Patil is an Indian Hindustani classical music vocalist. She belongs to the classical music Gwalior gharana.
Pandit Vinayak Malharrao Torvi, is an Indian classical vocalist. He belongs to the Gwalior and Kirana gharanas.
Pandit S. Ballesh Bhajantri is a popular Indian classical Hindustani shehnai player. He is a disciple of shehnai player Ustad Bismillah Khan, he is benares gharana shehnai player and a patiala gharana hindustani vocalist, ghazal singer, Indian playback singer and musician, Ballesh is credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. He is also a Prasar Bharati's All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan artist.
Pandit Rajaram alias Raja Kale is an Indian vocalist, composer, and scholar of Indian classical, semi-classical, and devotional music. He is a senior disciple of Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki. He also received valuable guidance from Pt. C. P. Rele and Pt. Balasaheb Poonchwale from the Gwalior gharana. Pt. Raja Kale is known for rendering both old and new Hindustani classical music with an approach that is at once eclectic and focused on the performance.
Pandit Ramdas Palsule is an Indian Tabla player. He is also an A grade artist of All India Radio and Doordarshan.
Meeta Pandit is a Hindustani Classical vocalist and a leading exponent of the Gwalior Gharana. She is the granddaughter and disciple of Krishnarao Shankar Pandit and daughter of Laxman Krishnarao Pandit. She is the sixth in the unbroken lineage and the first woman in the family to have taken up music as a profession.
Gaan Maharishi Pt. Krishnarao Shankar Pandit (1893–1989) was an Indian musician, considered by many as one of the leading vocalists of the Gwalior gharana. He authored several articles and 8 books on music and was the founder of Shankar Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, a music college based in Gwalior. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan, in 1973, for his contributions to music. He was also a recipient of several other honors, including the 1959 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and the 1980 Tansen Award of the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
Sangameshwar Gurav was a singer associated with the Kirana Gharana movement. He was taught musical skills by Ganpatrao Gurav.
Pandit Ravindra Yavagal is an Indian tabla player, performer and music teacher from the state of Karnataka. An eminent artiste, he is both a soloist and an accompanist. He received Rajyotsava Award in 1995, Karnataka Kalashri for 2016–17 and Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2021 for his contributions.