Pandit Hom Nath Upadhyaya (4 July 1943 – 7 September 2016) was a Nepali

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� ...

player who specialized in

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, si ...

. Upadhyaya served as royal court musician in Nepal.

Early life and education

He was born on 4 July 1943 (20 Ashar 2000 BS) in Gyaneshwor,

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

to father Tulsi Prasad Upadhyaya and mother Bhagirathi Upadhyaya. He received training in tabla from Pandit Ramji Mishra, Pandit Shambhu Mishra, and

Ahmed Jan Thirakwa Ustad Ahmed Jan Khan "Thirakwa" was an Indian tabla player, commonly considered the pre-eminent soloist among tabla players of the 20th century, and among the most influential percussionists in the history of Indian Classical Music. He was k ...

. In addition, Upadhyaya obtained a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in English, History, and Sanskrit from

Gorakhpur University DDU Gorakhpur University (simply known as University of Gorakhpur) is located in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. The University of Gorakhpur is a teaching and residential-cum-affiliating University. It is about . from the downtown to the east and al ...

and an

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in Music from

Prayag Sangeet Samiti Prayag Sangeet Samiti is an institute imparting education in Hindustani Classical music, in Allahabad, India. It awards diplomas and certificates in vocal music, instrumental music as well as classical dance. It was established in 1926. This ...

in Allahabad, India.

Musical career

Upadhyaya served as royal court musician in Nepal. He played globally as a soloist and accompanist in both Hindustani and Western musical traditions, including for artists such as

Manilal Nag Pandit Manilal Nag (born 16 August 1939) is an Indian classical sitar player and an exponent of the Bishnupur gharana of Bengal. He was given the Padma Shri Award, the fourth highest civilian award in India in 2020. Training and career Nag was ...

Tarun Bhattacharya Pandit Tarun Bhattacharya (born 23 December 1957) is an Indian classical musician who plays the santoor, a type of hammered dulcimer. He studied with Ravi Shankar. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for 2018. Early life Tarun Bhat ...

Mahesh Kale Mahesh Kale ( Marathi: महेश काळे; born 12 January 1976) is an Indian Classical vocalist renowned for his specialization in Indian Classical ( Hindustani), Semi-Classical, Devotional music including Natya Sangeet. Mahesh Kale ...

, Steve Gorn,

Jim Pepper Jim Gilbert Pepper II (June 18, 1941 – February 10, 1992) was a jazz saxophonist, composer and singer of Kaw and Muscogee Creek Native American heritage. He moved to New York City in 1964, where he came to prominence in the late 1960s as a mem ...

, and

Paul Livingstone Paul Livingstone is an American sitarist, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He is one of the few American disciples of Pandit Ravi Shankar, also trained under Rajeev Taranath and Amiya Dasgupta all of the Senia Maihar Gharana. Career Paul be ...

. He also played in the film orchestra of Bollywood music director

S. D. Burman Sachin Dev Burman (1 October 1906 – 31 October 1975) was an Indian music director and singer. A member of the Tripura royal family, he started his career with Bengali films in 1937. He later began composing for Hindi movies and became one o ...

. Upadhyaya taught extensively, both privately and at institutions such as the

Royal Nepal Academy The Nepal Academy ( ne, नेपाल प्रज्ञा–प्रतिष्ठान), formerly known as Royal Nepal Academy ( ne, नेपाल राजकीय प्रज्ञा–प्रतिष्ठान), is an autonomo ...

Tribhuvan University Tribhuvan University (TU; ne, त्रिभुवन विश्वविद्यालय) is a public university located in Kirtipur, Kathmandu. Established in 1959, TU is the oldest university in Nepal. In terms of enrollment, it is ...

, and the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

. He has authored two books on tabla, one each in Nepali (''Rhythmic Garland'') and English (''From Kashi To Kantipur: Theory, Practice and History of the Banaras Gharana of Tabla''). His students include his son Pramod Upadhyaya, Sarita Mishra, Dheeraj Shreshtha, Atul Gautam, Rob Wallace, Rabin Lal Shreshtha, and Achyut Ram Bhandari.

Awards and honours

Upadhyaya was conferred the Kirateshwar Sangeetshram Award and Nararaj Dhakal Award, and was a recipient of the Narayan Sangeet Pratishtan Fellowship of the Royal Nepal Academy and collaborative project grant from the Interdisciplinary Humanities Center, University of California, Santa Barbara.

Death

Upadhyaya died on 7 September 2016 in Om Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.

References

{{Authority control 1943 births 2016 deaths Tabla players Nepalese musicians Musicians from Kathmandu Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gorakhpur University alumni