Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya (BSVV), formerly Bhatkhande Music Institute Deemed University, Bhatkhande College of Hindustani Music and Marris College of Music, is a state university in

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and divis ...

. Established in 1926 by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, it was declared a deemed university by University Grants Commission (UGC) in 2000, and upgraded into a state university in 2022 by The Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya Act, 2022.https://upvidhai.gov.in/MediaGallery/Act2of2022.pdf It offers

music education Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origin ...

in Vocal Music, Instrumental, Rhythms, Dance, Musicology and Research and Applied Music.

History

The Institute finds its origin in the Marris College of Music, established in 1926 by renowned classical singer and musicologist, Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande and Rai Umanath Bali with the help of Dr. Rai Rajeshwar Bali, then Education minister of the United Provinces, the institution was formally inaugurated by then

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of United Provinces, Sir William Sinclair Marris, and was also named after him. Later, on 26 March 1966, the

Government of Uttar Pradesh The Government of Uttar Pradesh (ISO: Uttar Pradesh Sarkār; often abbreviated as GoUP) is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appointed constitutional head of the state by the President ...

took over the college and renamed it after its founder as Bhatkhande Music College of Hindustani Music, later and now Bhatkhande Music Institute Deemed University, after

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

through a notification on 24 October 2000, declared the institute a deemed university. During the 1970s & 1980s, the institute organized annual festivals in which the most eminent of the country's musicians performed. Some of the memorable concerts, that included performances by stars like Pd. Ravishanker, Amjad Ali Khan, Zakir Hussain, N Rajam, VJ Jog, Sitara Devi, etc. were part of the Lucknow Festival in the 1970s. During the same period various new courses, like "Thumri" (singer Mrs. Begum Akhtar was the honorary faculty), were introduced. In 2005, it organised a three-day classical music festival part of the Lucknow Mahotsav. Primarily teaching vocal, dance, musicology and applied music 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, sit ...

, the institute also started teaching western classical music in 2009, a move that didn't go well with some

chauvinist Chauvinism is the unreasonable belief in the superiority or dominance of one's own group or people, who are seen as strong and virtuous, while others are considered weak, unworthy, or inferior. It can be described as a form of extreme patriotism ...

s (not musicians or affiliated to the Institute), who feared that addition of Western classical music could later lead to replacement of Bharatnatyam courses by 'belly dancing.' In 2022 it was upgraded into a teaching and affiliating state University, and name was changed into Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya.

Departments

* Vocal (''Gayan'')- Classical, Semi-Classical and Light Vocal. * Instrumental (''Vadan'') ** Swaravadya - Sitar, Sarod, Violin, Guitar, Sarangi, Flute and Harmonium or Keyboard . ** Talavadya -

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� ...

and Pakhawaj * Dance (''Nritya'') ** Kathak, Bharatnatyam,

Manipuri dance , image = , alt = , caption = An illustration of the ''Manipuri Raas Leela'' dance, being depicted in a stamp from Armenia; transliterations of "Jagoi Raas" and "Manipuri Raas Leela", the terms in Meitei language (offi ...

and Folk dance. * Musicology & Research * Applied Music The institute offers courses in Vocal Music, Instrumental, Rhythms, Dance, Musicology & Research and Applied Music leading up to: Diploma in Music - 2 years, Bachelor of Performing Arts (B.P.A.) - 3 years, Master of Performing Arts (M.P.A.) - 2 years and Ph.D. Apart from this there are special for the training in

Dhrupad Dhrupad is a genre in Hindustani classical music from the Indian subcontinent. It is the oldest known style of major vocal styles associated with Hindustani classical music, Haveli Sangeet of Pushtimarg Sampraday and also related to the South I ...

- Dhamar, Thumri singing and Light classical music which includes music composition and direction.

Notable alumni

Leela Desai Leela Desai, aka Lila Desai, was an Indian actress in the 1930s and 1940s. She was the daughter of Umedram Lalbhai Desai and his second wife Satyabala Devi, a musician of the early 1900s. Desai was born in Newark, New Jersey when her paren ...

* Saraswati Devi, film score composers * Pt K. G. Ginde - Classical Vocal * Anup Jalota, singer *

Anindita Paul Anindita Paul is an Indian singer who sings predominantly in Assamese, Bengali and Hindi languages. Early life Anindita Paul was born in 1979 in Guwahati, Assam, into a Bengali family of Amal Kanti Paul and Shyamali Paul. Her father was in ...

, singer, songwriter and composer *

V. G. Jog Vishnu Govind Jog, better known as V. G. Jog (22 February 1922 – 31 January 2004), was an Indian violinist. He was the foremost exponent of the violin in the Hindustani music tradition in the 20th century, and is credited for introducing ...

Kanika Kapoor Kanika Kapoor (born 21 August 1978) is an Indian singer. She was born and raised in Lucknow. In 2012, she relocated to Mumbai to become a singer. Kapoor's first song "Jugni Ji" (2012) was for a music videowhich became a commercial success. In 2 ...

, singer * Shanno Khurana * Talat Mahmood, playback singer * W. D. Amaradeva, Sri Lankan Singer * Nanda Malini, Sri Lankan Singer * Sujatha Attanayake, Sri Lankan Singer * Amit Mishra * Dayarathna Ranatunga, Sri Lankan Singer * Sumati Mutatkar * Sanath Nandasiri, Sri Lankan musician * Kalpana Patowary, payback and folk singer * Roshan, film score composer *

Sunil Santha Sunil Santha was a Sri Lankan composer, singer and lyricist. He was pivotal in the development of Sinhala music and folk songs in the mid to late 1940s and early 1950s. He composed the beloved soundtracks to Lester James Peries' films '' Rekava' ...

, Sri Lankan musician *

Pahari Sanyal Pahari Sanyal (22 February 1906 – 10 February 1974) was an Indian actor and singer who is known for his work in Bengali cinema. Sanyal acted in many Bengali films, such as '' Harano Sur'', ''Bhanu Goenda Jahar Assistant'', and ''Shilpi''. ...

, Bengali film-actor * C. R. Vyas

Notable faculty

* S. N. Ratanjankar, principal *

Mohanrao Kallianpurkar Mohanrao Shankarrao Kallianpurkar (; 12 August 1913 – 1 December 1985) was a Kathak dancer and teacher from Karnataka, considered to be one of the greatest scholars and teacher of Kathak dance form. He belongs to Jaipur school of Kathak. Bio ...

Puru Dadheech Puru Dadheech (Purushottam Dadheech, 17 July 1939) is a Kathak dancer. He is a choreographer and educator of Indian classical dance, and is known for his pioneering work in the field of Kathak. At the oldest Kathak department which was formed ...

References

External links