Ram Narayan

Ram Narayan (; born 25 December 1927), often referred to with the title Pandit, is an Indian musician who popularised the bowed instrument ''sarangi'' as a solo concert instrument in Hindustani classical music and became the first internationally successful ''sarangi'' player.

Narayan was born near Udaipur and learned to play the ''sarangi'' at an early age. He studied under ''sarangi'' players and singers and, as a teenager, worked as a music teacher and travelling musician. All India Radio, Lahore, hired Narayan as an accompanist for vocalists in 1944. He moved to Delhi following the partition of India in 1947, but wishing to go beyond accompaniment and frustrated with his supporting role, Narayan moved to Mumbai in 1949 to work in Indian cinema.

Narayan became a concert solo artist in 1956 and has since performed at the major music festivals of India. After ''sitar'' player Ravi Shankar successfully performed in Western countries, Narayan followed his example. He recorded solo albums and made his first international tour in 1964 to America and Europe with his older brother Chatur Lal, a ''tabla'' player who had toured with Shankar in the 1950s. Narayan taught Indian and foreign students and performed, frequently outside India, into the 2000s. He was awarded India's second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan, in 2005.

Early life

Ram Narayan was born on 25 December 1927 in Amber village, near Udaipur in northwestern India.Sorrell 1980, p. 11 His great-great-grandfather, Bagaji Biyavat, was a singer from Amber, and he and Narayan's great-grandfather, Sagad Danji Biyavat, sang at the court of the Maharana of Udaipur. Narayan's grandfather, Har Lalji Biyavat, and father, Nathuji Biyavat, were farmers and singers, Nathuji played the bowed instrument ''dilruba'', and Narayan's mother was a music lover.Sorrell 1980, p. 13 Narayan's first language was Rajasthani and he learned Hindi and, later, English.Qureshi 2007, p. 108Qureshi 2007, p. 109 At an age of about six, he found a small ''sarangi'' left by the family's ''Ganga guru'', a genealogist, and was taught a fingering technique developed by his father.Sorrell 1980, p. 14Bor 1987, p. 149 Narayan's father taught him, but was worried about the difficulty of playing the ''sarangi'' and its association with courtesan music, which gave the instrument a low social status.Sorrell 2001, p. 637 After a year, Biyavat sought lessons for his son from ''sarangi'' player Mehboob Khan of Jaipur, but changed his mind when Khan told him Narayan would have to change his fingering technique. Narayan's father later encouraged him to leave school and devote himself to playing the ''sarangi''.

At about ten years of age, Narayan learned the basics of ''dhrupad'', the oldest genre of Hindustani classical music, by studying and imitating the practice of ''sarangi'' player Uday Lal of Udaipur, a student of ''dhrupad'' singers Allabande and Zakiruddin Dagar.Bor 1999, p. 180 After Uday Lal died of old age, Narayan met travelling singer Madhav Prasad, originally of Lucknow, who had performed at the court of Maihar.Bor 1987, p. 151Sorrell 1980, p. 15 With Prasad, Narayan enacted the ''ganda bandhan'', a traditional ceremony of acceptance between a teacher and his pupil, in which Narayan swore obedience in exchange for being maintained by Prasad.Sorrell 1980, p. 17 He served Prasad and was taught in ''khyal'', the predominant genre of Hindustani classical music, but returned to Udaipur after four years to teach music school. Prasad later visited Narayan and convinced him to resign his position and dedicate his time to improvement as a musician, although the idea of giving up a steady life was not well received by Narayan's family. He stayed with Prasad and travelled to several Indian states until Prasad fell ill and advised him to learn from singer Abdul Wahid Khan.Sorrell 1980, p. 16 Following Prasad's death in Lucknow, Narayan enacted the ''ganda bandhan'' with another teacher who gave him lessons, but soon left for Lahore and never performed the ritual again.

Career

Narayan travelled to Lahore in 1943 and auditioned for the local All India Radio (AIR) station as a singer, but the station's music producer, Jivan Lal Mattoo, noticed grooves in Narayan's fingernails: ''sarangis'' are played by pressing the fingernails sideways against three playing strings, which strains the nails. Mattoo instead employed Narayan as a ''sarangi'' player. Traditionally, the ''sarangi'' is supposed to play after the singer and imitate the vocal performance, and play in the space between phrases.Sorrell 1980, p. 21 Mattoo advised Narayan and helped him contact ''khyal'' singer Abdul Wahid Khans'' through singing lessons.Sorrell 1980, p. 19 Narayan was allowed sporadic solo performances on AIR and began to consider a solo career.Sorrell 1980, p. 20

After the partition of India in 1947, Narayan moved to Delhi and played at the local AIR station. His work for popular singers increased his repertoire and knowledge of styles.Neuhoff 2006, pp. 911–912 Narayan played with the classical singers Omkarnath Thakur, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, and Krishnarao Shankar Pandit, and he accompanied singer Amir Khan in 1948, when Khan sang for the first time at AIR Delhi following the partition. As an accompanist for vocalists, Narayan showed his own talent and came to the foreground. Singers of the city complained that he was not a dependable accompanist and too assertive, but he maintained he wanted to keep vocalists in tune and inspire them in a cordial contest.Sorrell 1980, p. 20–22 Other ''tabla'' (percussion) players and singers, including Omkarnath Thakur and Krishnarao Shankar Pandit, expressed admiration for Narayan's playing.Sorrell 1980, p. 22

Narayan became frustrated with his supporting role for vocalists and moved to Mumbai in 1949 to work independently in film music and recording.Sorrell 1980, p. 23Qureshi 2007, p. 107 He recorded three solo 78 rpm gramophone records for the British HMV Group in 1950 and an early ten-inch LP album in Mumbai in 1951, but the album was not in demand.Bor 1987, p. 152 The Mumbai film industry offered a good salary and obscurity for work that would have lowered his stature among classical musicians. For the next 15 years he played and composed songs for films, including ''Adalat'', ''Gunga Jumna'', '' Humdard'', ''Kashmir Ki Kali'', ''Madhumati'', ''Milan'', ''Mughal-e-Azam'', and ''Noorjehan''.Qureshi 2007, p. 119 He was considered a desired choice of film music director O. P. Nayyar.

Narayan performed in Afghanistan in 1952 and in China in 1954 and was well received in both countries.Sorrell 1980, p. 25 His first solo concert at a 1954 music festival in the Cowasji Jehangir Hall, Mumbai, was cut short when an impatient audience, waiting for performances by famous artists, drove him from the stage.Sorrell 1980, p. 24 Narayan pondered giving up the ''sarangi'' and becoming a singer. He later regained confidence, performed solo for smaller crowds, and was favourably received in his second attempt to play solo for a Mumbai music festival in 1956. He has since performed at the major music festivals of India. Narayan later gave up accompaniment; this decision carried a financial risk because interest in solo ''sarangi'' was not yet substantial.

After ''sitar'' player Ravi Shankar successfully performed in Western countries, Narayan followed his example.Bor 1992, p. 48 He recorded solo albums and made his first international tour in 1964 to America and Europe with his older brother Chatur Lal, a ''tabla'' player who had toured with Shankar in the 1950s.Sorrell 1980, p. 26–27 The European tour included performances in France, Germany, sponsored by the Goethe-Institut, and at the City of London Festival, England. Beginning in the 1960s, Narayan often taught and gave concerts outside of India. On his Western tours he encountered interest in the ''sarangi'' because of its similarity to the cello and violin. The ''tabla'' player Suresh Talwalkar became a frequent accompanist for Narayan in the late 1960s. Narayan continued to perform and record in India and abroad for the next decades and his recordings appeared on Indian, American, and European labels. During the early 1980s he typically spent months each year visiting Western nations. Narayan performed less frequently in the 2000s and rarely in the 2010s.

Style

Narayan's style is characteristic of Hindustani classical music, but his choice of solo instrument and his background of learning from teachers outside his community are not common for the genre.Sorrell 1980, p. viii He has stated that he aims to please the audience and create a feeling of harmony, and expects the audience to reciprocate by reacting to his playing.Sorrell 1980, p. 29–31

Narayan's performances are strung together from the meditative and measured ''alap'' (non-metrical introduction) and '' jor'' (performance with pulse) in ''dhrupad'' style, followed by a faster and less reserved '' gat'' section (composition with rhythmic pattern provided by the ''tabla'') in ''khyal'' style.Sorrell 1980, p. 125 He experimented with a style of ''jhala'' (performance with rapid pulse) developed by Bundu Khan, but considered it more appropriate for plucked instruments and stopped performing it.Sorrell 1980, p. 111 The ''gat'' section includes one or two parts with compositions.Sorrell 1980, p. 123 When two ''gats'' are used, the first one tends to be at a slow or medium tempo, and the second one is faster; the ''gats'' are usually performed in the 16-beat rhythmic cycle ''tintal''.Sorrell 1980, p. 126 Narayan often completes performances with ''ragas'' associated with ''thumri'' (a popular light classical genre), which are referred to as ''mishra'' (Sanskrit: mixed) because they allow for additional notes, or with a '' dhun'' (song based on folk music).

Narayan practices and teaches using a limited number of ''paltas'', exercises in a small scale range that are used to prepare playing different numbers of notes per bow.Sorrell 1980, pp. 70–71 Derived from ''paltas'' are lengthy note patterns called ''tans'', which contain characteristic "melodic shapes" and are used by Narayan for fast playing.Sorrell 1980, p. 75 He uses his left (fingering) hand for runs and to play an extended melodic range, and his right (bowing) hand for rhythmic accentuations. Narayan's fingering technique, his low right hand position, keeping the bow in a close to right angle to the string, and his use of the full bow length are unusual among ''sarangi'' players.

Narayan is associated with the Kirana ''gharana'' (stylistic school of Kirana) through Abdul Wahid Khan's The Proms in the Royal Albert Hall, London, with Aruna, and he played at the 2010 Sawai Gandharva Music Festival, Pune, with Harsh.

Narayan is a Hindu and has stated "music is my religion", arguing that there was no better access to divinity than music. He is based in Mumbai.

Discography

Writings

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Notes

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Narayan, Ram
1927 births
20th-century Indian musicians
All India Radio people
Articles containing video clips
Hindustani instrumentalists
Indian Hindus
Indian male classical musicians
Living people
Musicians from Mumbai
People from Udaipur district
Rajasthani people
Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts
Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in arts
Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sarangi players