Abhay Rustum Sopori (born 7 June 1979) is an Indian

Santoor The Indian santoor instrument is a trapezoid-shaped hammered dulcimer, and a variation of the Iranian santur. The instrument is generally made of walnut and has 25 bridges. Each bridge has 4 strings, making for a total of 100 strings. It is a ...

player, music composer and conductor. He is the son of Santoor player Pandit Bhajan Sopori, known for his versatility, innovations and experimentation. Sopori has received awards in recognition of his contribution in the field of music, and is one of the youngest recipients of awards such as 'Bharat Shiromani Award' & 'Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar'. Abhay was invited to speak at the international conference

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Life and career

Early life and family

Abhay Rustum Sopori was born on 7 June 1979 in the city of

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

situated in the

Kashmir valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...

of Jammu and Kashmir. His parents were musician Bhajan Sopori and Aparna Sopori, a professor of English literature. He learned Santoor under the traditional Guru-Shishya Parampara of his mystic Shaivite-Sufi tradition from his grandfather Shamboo Nath Sopori, hailed as the "Father of Classical Music" in Jammu and Kashmir and his father Bhajan Sopori. Abhay represents the ''Sufiana Gharana'' of Kashmir, coming from a family of traditional Santoor players, spanning over nine generations spread over more than 300 years. Sopori has a bachelor's and master's degree in Music from Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh, India and holds bachelors in Commerce from

Delhi University Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate university, collegiate Central university (India), central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and ...

and Computers from

Indira Gandhi National Open University Indira Gandhi National Open University, known as IGNOU, is a Central University located at Maidan Garhi, New Delhi, India. Named after former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi, the university was established in 1985 with a budget of 20& ...

Career

Sopori was trained in Indian classical music from his childhood, as well as Western and Sufiana music. Apart from santoor, he also learned vocals, Indian classical sitar, Sufiana sitar and piano. He recorded his first song at the age of 3 for a musical feature for

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composed by his father and was also part of his father's grand choral presentation featuring over 8000 voices in Srinagar Kashmir in 1985. He presented his first Choral presentation featuring over 100 singers in October 2005 in Kashmir organised by Sopori Academy of Music And Performing Arts (SaMaPa). Abhay's J&K Folk Music Ensembles (Soz-o-Saaz) have also been presented at various other festivals and conferences, which include the 'Jammu & Kashmir Festival' presented at the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts in New Delhi in 2009 and Ganesh Kala KridaRangmanch in Pune in 2010, which left the audiences captivated and mesmerized. Abhay's Classical fusions have also received rave reviews. In 2000, Abhay started his musical work in Kashmir performing for the youth across the Valley promoting Indian classical music and culture and is credited with changing the entire cultural scenario of Jammu & Kashmir bringing the youth together through music. His concerts in border areas of J&K have been attended by over 20,000 people. Abhay with maestro Mr

Since his debut as a Classical Santoor player in mid 1990s, Abhay has performed in prestigious festivals across

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and around the world in countries like the

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, etc. Sopori introduced the concept of 'Sufi Music Ensemble' titled 'Sufi Kinship®’ in 2011 featuring 35 musicians and Santoor led an Indian Classical Music Ensemble in 2014 featuring 25 musicians and performed at various concerts across India. He scored the music for the fusion composition titled Haftrang (seven colors in Kashmiri) in 2013 performed by the

Bavarian State Orchestra The Bavarian State Orchestra (german: Bayerisches Staatsorchester, italic=no) is the orchestra of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Germany. It has given its own series of concerts, the , since 1811. Profile On 9 December 2011, this ensemble c ...

of Germany, together with his Kashmiri folk music ensemble Soz-o-Saaz, giving international recognition to Kashmiri music. The concert was telecast live in more than 100 countries. The orchestra consisted of around 100 musicians. Sopori has also done international collaborations including presentations with the Austrian

Vienna Boys Choir The Vienna Boys' Choir (german: Wiener Sängerknaben) is a choir of boy sopranos and altos based in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the best known boys' choirs in the world. The boys are selected mainly from Austria, but also from many other countr ...

, Moroccan Lutist Haj Younis, Iranian santoor player Darius Saghafi, American dulcimer player Malcom Dalgish, French clarinetist Laurent Clouet & others. He has held various cultural positions like: * General Secretary, SaMaPa (Sopori Academy of Music And Performing Arts) (SaMaPa), one of the most prominent and prestigious music academies and organizations of India (2005 onwards) * Member of Central Committee, J&K Academy of Art, Culture & Languages, Govt. of J&K (2016 onwards) * Member of General Council, J&K Academy of Art, Culture & Languages, Govt. of J&K (2016 onwards) * Member, Editorial Board, JK Music Initiative, Music Journal by Department of Higher Education, Govt. of J&K (2018 onwards) * Visiting Faculty, University of Massachusetts, Amherst USA (2004)

Artistry

Style of Santoor

Sopori's Classical Santoor performance is marked by mellifluous playing, lightning tempo, clarity and accuracy of Indian Classical ''Raga'' exposition and adoption of the ''Sopori Baaj (''style'')'', the unique and systematic format of Santoor playing created by his father. Presentation of Dhrupad system along with the accompaniment of the ''Pakhawaj'' is also a special characteristic of his Sopori ''Baaj'' and performance. He sings the compositions along with their instrumental rendering reviving his traditional Shaivaite - Sufi Santoor Parampara.

Innovations & creations

Sopori continues to innovate and experiment with Santoor to further extend its dimensions. He has introduced the ''Open String Concept'', together with the ''Enhanced Sustain Technique'', giving a new dimension to the sound. He also established the concept of ‘'Gayan-Vadan Baaj'’ (vocal-instrumental system) and ‘'Been Ang''. He invented, designed and introduced a 30-stringed instrument in 2004 named as Sur-Santoor. Sopori has been instrumental in reviving the old ''Sufiana'' compositions of his predecessors and adopted them in the Indian Classical scenario and also composed and introduced new ''Khayal'' compositions. ''Raga Nirmalkauns'' named after Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi and ''Raga MahaKali'' named after Goddess Mother Kali are Abhay's newly composed

Raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradit ...

Composer

Abhay has composed music for Films, Telefilms, Short Films, Serials (TV & Radio) and Documentaries. He recently debuted as a composer in Bollywood commercial cinema with

Shikara The shikara is a type of wooden boat found on Dal Lake and other water bodies of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir Shikaras are of various sizes and are used for multiple purposes, including transportation. A usual shikara seats six people, with t ...

movie and composed the Love theme son
Dilbar Lagyo
and the Wedding Song title
Shukrana Gul Khile
His other work includes Mahatma, a documentary film by Government of India on Mahatma Gandhi, presented at the United Nations marking the first International Non-violence Day, the Kashmiri film Bub, and the film ''Ziyarat''.

Filmography

Television

* Sailaab (Flood) - ''Composer, Singer,

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...

'' * Guldasta (Flower Bouquet) - ''Composer,

'' *

Tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

ka Itihas (History of Table instrument) - ''Composer, Radio'' * Roshni (Light) - ''Composer,

'' * Do Sheheron Ki Kahani (Tale of Two Cities) - ''Composer,

'' * Bazm-E-Chiraghan - Singer, Composer, ''

'' (Urdu) *

Aaj Tak ''Aaj Tak'' () is an Indian Hindi-language news channel owned by TV Today Network, part of the New Delhi-based media conglomerate Living Media group (India Today Group) Aaj Tak HD On 14 December 2018, Aaj Tak launched India's first Hindi h ...

news channel title music, Santoor music

Compositions

Albums

* Vishuddha 1, SaMaPa, ''Classical Santoor'' *Vishuddha 2, SaMaPa, ''Classical Santoor'' *Triveni, SaMaPa, ''Santoor'' ''Fusion'' *Sopori Legacy, SaMaPa, ''Classical Santoor'' *Dancing Dewdrops,

Virgin EMI Records Virgin EMI Records was a British record label owned by the Universal Music Group that was formed in 2013. In June 2020, the label was rebranded as EMI Records, and operates Virgin Records as an imprint of the new EMI Records. History Virgin ...

, ''Santoor'' ''Fusion (Classical)'' *The Urban Grooves – Kashmir,

, ''Santoor Fusion (Kashmiri)'' *Tum Jo Mile,

, ''Santoor Fusion'' *Voyage au coeur de l'Inde,

, ''Santoor Fusion'' *Spirit of Doon,

, ''Composer'' *Fragrances of Cabella, SaMaPa, ''Classical Santoor'' *Voice of Strings, Mars Music, ''Classical Santoor'' *New Strings, Mars Music, ''Classical Santoor'' *Santoor Vadan, NITL India, ''Classical Santoor'' *Shehjaar, Saregama& SaMaPa, ''Composer'' *Aalav,

Saregama Saregama India Ltd. (Saregama refers to the first four notes of the Indian musical scale); formerly known as The Gramophone Company Of India Ltd. is India's oldest music label owned by the RP- Sanjiv Goenka Group of companies. The company i ...

& SaMaPa, ''Co-composer'' * Runjhun,

& SaMaPa, ''Co-composer'' * Kabir Bani, SaMaPa, ''Composer & Singer'' * Meera Bhajans, SaMaPa, ''Composer & Singer'' * Ma Haro Meri Peer, SaMaPa, ''Co-composer'' * Ajab Nain Tere, SaMaPa, ''Co-composer'' *Anwari Muhammadi^SAW, SaMaPa, ''Composer'' * Jai Baba Barfani (Shri Amarnath Ji Shrine Board), ''Co-composer & Singer'' * Amarnath Yatra,

Times Music Times Music, a division of The Times Group, is an Indian record label and music publisher. Headquartered in Mumbai, Times Music started operations in 1998 and has a catalogue of more than 60,000 tracks in all languages and genres. Times Music ...

, ''Co-composer & Singer''

Singles

* Vaishno Janto Folk Instrumental version,

, Govt. of India, ''Co-composer'' * Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat,

, ''Co-composer & Singer'' * Challa,

T-Series (company) Super Cassettes Industries Private Limited, doing business as T-Series, is an Indian music record label and film production company founded by Gulshan Kumar on 11 July 1983. It is primarily known for Bollywood music soundtracks and Indi-pop mu ...

, ''Composer'' * Aao Kadam Badhayain (SaMaPa), ''Composer'' * Dua (SaMaPa), ''Composer & Singer'' *

Wohi Khuda Hai Wohi Khuda Hai () is a ''hamd''. The poem was written by Pakistani Urdu poet and lyricist, Muzaffar Warsi. It praises God as the Only Creator of the large system of Universe that runs and maintains the order with harmony and balance. It has be ...

(SaMaPa), ''Composer'' * Nai Subha - Kashmiri (SaMaPa), ''Composer & Singer'' * Nai Subha - Dogri (SaMaPa), ''Composer & Singer'' * Hazrat-e-Nabi^SAW (SaMaPa), ''Composer'' *Jannat-e-Kashmir (SaMaPa), ''Co-composer &'' ''Singer''

Awards and accolades

* 2020: ''Mahatma Gandhi Seva Medal'' - Gandhi Global Peace Award by United Nations accredited Gandhi Global Family -

Jammu and Kashmir (union territory) Jammu and Kashmir is a region administered by India as a union territory and consists of the southern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947, and between India and ...

* 2019: ''Top Grade Artist'' by All India Radio, Govt. of India -

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

* 2018: ''Raag Ranjani Sangeet Bhushan Award'' -

* 2018: ''Pt. Man Mohan Bhatt Award'' -

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

* 2017: ''Atal Shikhar Samman'' - Presented at the Parliament of India -

* 2017: ''Dr. S. Radhakrishnan National Media Award'' -

* 2016: ''State Icon'' - title by Election Commission of India -

* 2016: ''Pride of Paradise Award -''

* 2015: ''Pride of India Award'' -

* 2015: ''Sangeet Gaurav Samman'' -

* 2014: ''Madras Music Academy Award'' -

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

* 2014: ''Sangeet Mani Award'' -

* 2013: ''Indian Fine Arts Society Award'' -

Kingdom of Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ad ...

* 2013: ''Sabzaar Award of Excellence'' -

* 2012: ''Kashmir Kirti Samman'' -

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

. * 2011: ''J&K Civil Award'' - Highest Civilian Award of Jammu & Kashmir by J&K Govt. ''-

'' * 2011: ''Kashmir Educational, Cultural & Social Society (KECSS) Award'' -

* 2010: ''Glory of India Award'' -

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

* 2010: ''Best Citizens of India Award'' -

* 2010: ''Raag Ranjani Sangeet Shree Award'' -

* 2010: ''Bharat Shiromani Award'' -

* 2009: ''Ma Sharika Samman'' -

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

* 2008: ''National Dogri Award'' -

* 2007: ''Pt. Gama Maharaj Sangeet Bhushan Samman'' -

* 2007: ''Excellence Award'' -

* 2006: ''Sangeet Natak Akademi’s first 'Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar'' -

* 2006: ''Young India Award'' -

* 2005: ''Juenjo Korean International Heritage Award'' -

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

* 2004: ''Kalawant Samman'' -

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

Philanthropic contributions

Sopori started working with the State Government of Jammu and Kashmir to expand and accomplish his grandfather's dream and after several years of hard work and dedication, he was able to introduce music as a formal subject in the educational setup of Jammu and Kashmir. The initiative also called ''The Music Initiative of Abhay Rustum Sopori'' has been a major step in the educational system of the state (now union territory) creating new streams in colleges and universities and, offering new job opportunities for the youth. Sopori is a strong believer of peace and humanity and has been promoting the same ideology also preached by Mahatma Gandhi through music. He has introduced the concept of 'Common Song' aimed at providing a musical healing touch in Jammu and Kashmir under the banner of SaMaPa, which include musical hits like 'Aao Kadam Badhayain', 'Mere Jannet-e-Kashmir', 'Zameen', 'Nai Subha', 'Jammu-Ane', 'Wohi Khuda Hai', 'Dua', etc. In 2005 Abhay, along with his father, founded the music academy and organization called SaMaPa (Sopori Academy of Music And Performing Arts), which is acclaimed for its work in Delhi and J&K. Post 2005, the programmes and events have been organized under the banner of SaMaPa. Some of the festivals include SaMaPa Sangeet Sammelan (Delhi) which is considered as the topmost music festival of Delhi; SaMaPa Aalap Festival (J&K) which is one of the biggest music festivals witnessed by over 50,000 people. SaMaPa Aalap Festival is held at a number of venues including border areas, cultural centers, jails, etc. at places like Sopore,

Baramulla Baramulla (), also known as Varmul () in Kashmiri, is a town and a municipality in the Baramulla district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is also the administrative headquarters of the Baramulla district. It is on the b ...

Kupwara Kupwara is a town and a municipal council in Kupwara district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Municipal council Kupwara is an Urban Local Body with 13 elected members (also in Delimitation in progress for wards), which adm ...

Bandipora Bandipore () or Bandipora is the headquarters of district of Bandipore in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is located on the northern banks of Wullar Lake—the second-largest freshwater lake in Asia. Bandipora has a ter ...

Budgam Budgam (), known as Badgom (; ) in Kashmiri language, Kashmiri, is a town in Budgam district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir, India. In the 2001 census, it was recorded as having a notified area ...

Anantnag Anantnag (/ə'nʌntna:g/ or /-nɑːg/ ), also called Islamabad, is the administrative headquarters of the Anantnag district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is located at a distance of ...

Ganderbal Ganderbal is a town and a municipality committee in Ganderbal district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters of Ganderbal district.It is in Central Kashmir, it has an average elevation of 1,619 metres (5, ...

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

, Samba, Khour, RS Pora, Rajouri, Poonch, Katra, Udampur, Akhnoor, etc. The festival was started in 2006 and over the years has presented thousands of young talents of Jammu and Kashmir. Sopori has held charity concerts for various medical and social causes and also catastrophes like Kashmir earthquake in 2005 (over INR 10 million) & Jammu and Kashmir floods in 2014 (over INR 8 million).

Gallery

File:ARS Classical Fusion.jpg, Abhay Rustum Sopori presenting his Classical Music Ensemble 2014 in Delhi File:ARS presenting at J&K.jpg, Abhay Rustum Sopori presenting his J&K Folk Music Ensemble in Pune File:ARS TEDx.jpg, Abhay Rustum Sopori speaking at TEDx 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sopori, Abhay Living people Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Santoor players Indian male classical musicians Kashmiri musicians People from Srinagar 1979 births