Chintaman Raghunath Vyas (9 November 1924 – 10 January 2002), popularly known as C. R. Vyas, was an Indian classical singer. He was known for singing

khyal Khyal or Khayal (ख़याल / خیال) is a major form of Hindustani classical music in the Indian subcontinent. Its name comes from a Persian/Arabic word meaning "imagination". Khyal is associated with romantic poetry, and allows the perfor ...

style.

Early life

Vyas was born in

Osmanabad Osmanabad (; pronounced as ''Usmānābād''),is a city and a municipal council in Osmanabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Osmanabad derives its name from the last ruler of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan. Osmanabad city is the adm ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

, into a family of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

scholars and

Hari Hari ( sa, हरि) is among the primary epithets of the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, meaning 'the one who takes away' (sins). It refers to the one who removes darkness and illusion, the one who removes all obstacles to spiritual progress ...

kirtankar Kirtana ( sa, कीर्तन; ), also rendered as Kirtan, is a Sanskrit word that means "narrating, reciting, telling, describing" of an idea or story, specifically in Indian religions. It also refers to a genre of religious performance arts ...

s. He was influenced by the singing of his father and grandfather, episodes from

Ramayan The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...

and

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

. He had his initial music training from Govindrao Bhatambrekar of the

Kirana gharana Kirana gharana is one of the Indian classical khyal gharanas, and is concerned foremost with perfect intonation of notes (swara). Singing style The central concern of the Kirana style is swara, or individual notes, in particular precise tuning ...

for a decade. Then he learnt from Rajarambua Paradkar of

Gwalior Gwalior() is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; it lies in northern part of Madhya Pradesh and is one of the Counter-magnet cities. Located south of Delhi, the capital city of India, from Agra and from Bhopal, the s ...

. While he was training in the Gwalior style of singing, he was impressed by

Jagannathbuwa Purohit Jagannathbuwa Purohit (12 March 1904 – 1968), also known as Pandit Gunidas, was a singer and a teacher of Hindustani classical music. He studied under Vilayat Hussain Khan of Agra Gharana. Buwa's colophon was 'Gunidas'. ''Agra Gharana'' Buwa's ...

who belonged to the

Agra gharana The Agra gharana is a tradition of Hindustani classical vocal music descended from the Nauhar Bani. So far, Nauhar Bani has been traced back to around 1300 AD, during the reign of Emperor Allauddin Khilji of Delhi. The first known musician of ...

and started learning from him. He also got guidance from Yeshwantbuva Mirashi. He also benefited from association with other scholars/musicians, namely

S N Ratanjankar Shrikrishna Narayan Ratanjankar born 31 December 1899 and died 14 February 1974. He was a distinguished scholar and teacher of Hindustani classical music, from the Agra gharana. Foremost disciple of Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande and Faiyaz Khan of Ba ...

, Chidanand Nagarkar, S.C.R. Bhat and

K. G. Ginde Krishna Gundopant Ginde, better known as K.G. Ginde (26 December 1925 – 13 July 1994) was an Indian classical singer and teacher. His guru S N Ratanjankar was his biggest influence. Biography Ginde, called "Chhotu" (small) by family member ...

Career

C. R. Vyas had an open-throated voice and sang a blend of all the different

gharana In Hindustani music (North Indian classical music), a ''gharānā'' is a system of social organisation in the Indian subcontinent, linking musicians or dancers by lineage or apprenticeship, and more importantly by adherence to a particular mus ...

s he was trained in, but the influence of the

gayaki is quite prominent. He had been employed at ITC in a white collar job. Music was not a primary vocation. In his own words, "In our time we did not think of earning either fame or money through music". He was a leading artist in

AIR The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

and on TV. He has participated in major musical events in India as well as abroad. Among his disciples are Shripad Paradkar (son of his own guru Legendary Gwalior gharana vocalist Pt Rajarambua Paradkar),

Prabhakar Karekar Pandit Prabhakar Karekar (b 1944) is a Hindustani classical vocalist, born in Goa, India. He was awarded Tansen Samman in 2014 and Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in the year 2016. Background Prabhakar Janardan Karekar was born in 1944, in what wa ...

Sriram Parasuram Sriram Parasuram is a Hindustani classical vocalist. He also plays the violin. Early life He was born into a family steeped in musical tradition, and he was really inclined to music since childhood. His first guru was Smt. Yumpati Parvathy Para ...

Sanjeev Chimmalgi Pandit Sanjeev Chimmalgi ( hi, संजीव चिम्मलगि) (born 29 July 1972) is an Indian music composer and Hindustani vocalist. He is a disciple of C. R. Vyas. His music reflects the voice culture of Kirana gharana as well a ...

Ganapati Bhat 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 i ...

and his son Suhas Vyas.

Jitendra Abhisheki Ganesh Balawant Nawathe, better known as Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki (21 September 1929 – 7 November 1998), was an Indian vocalist, composer and scholar of Indian classical, semi-classical, and devotional music. While he distinguished himself ...

was his student for almost ten years.

Personal life

He was married to Smt Indira Vyas. They have three sons-Suhas Vyas, a veteran classical vocalist himself, Satish Vyas, prominent Santoor Player and Shashi Vyas, a Chartered Accountant by profession and now the Managing Director of Pancham Nishad, the leading most event management/organising company of Classical Music. He also researched traditional

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 ...

s and

bandish Bandish, cheez or gat is a fixed, melodic composition in Hindustani vocal or instrumental music. It is set in a specific raga, performed with rhythmic accompaniment by a tabla or pakhawaj, a steady drone, and melodic accompaniment by a sarangi, vi ...

es and composed more than 200 bandishes in different ragas under the pen-name ''Gunijaan''. As a tribute to his

Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...

Gunidas he started the Gunidas Sangeet Sammelan in 1977. He has written a book ''Raag Sarita'' which sums up his work in the field of music. The updated edition of the book was recently released in 2019 by his son Suhas Vyas.

Awards and recognition

Tansen Tansen ( – 26 April 1589), also referred to and commonly known as Sangeet Samrat () , was a Hindustani classical musician. Born in a Hindu Gaur Brahmin family, he learnt and perfected his art in the northwest region of modern Madhya Pra ...

Sanman by Government of

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

in 1999 * Master

Dinanath Mangeshkar Deenanath Mangeshkar (; 29 December 1900 – 24 April 1942) was a well-known Marathi theatre actor, a Natya Sangeet musician and a Hindustani classical vocalist. He is also the father of well-known singers Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Meena Kh ...

Puraskar in 1999 *

Marathwada Marathwada () is a proposed state and geographical region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It was formed during the Nizam's rule and was part of the then Hyderabad State. The region coincides with the Aurangabad division of Maharashtra. ...

Gaurav Puraskar in 1998 * Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan Award in 1994 *

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

in 1992 *

Gaurav Puraskar in 1990 *

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in Englis ...

in 1987

Discography

* Etched in Time — Pandit C. R. Vyas (VCD — Released in 2007) * Tapasya — Vol 1 & 2 (2005) This album features Live recordings of

Pandit Jasraj Pandit Jasraj (28 January 1930 – 17 August 2020) was an Indian classical vocalist, belonging to the '' Mewati gharana'' (musical apprenticeship lineage). His musical career spanned 75 years resulting in national and international fame ...

Bhimsen Joshi Pandit Bhimsen Gururaj Joshi BR (; ; 4 February 1922 – 24 January 2011), 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 '' khaya ...

& Vyas * Sangeet Sartaj - C R Vyas (Vocal) This double volume album will feature the great Hindustani classical vocalist Vyas. The maestro has rendered in this album ragas like Bihag, Bimpalasi and Ahiri Lalit to name a few. * Eternal Rhapsody - C R Vyas Live Recording In

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- ...

References

https://www.hindustantimes.com/pune-news/fan-of-classical-music-raag-sarita-2-0-is-your-chance-to-grab-original-compositions-by-vocalist-pandit-cr-vyas-in-pune-on-feb-9/story-C4HNJmkiCnuZNaeAe602gL.html https://punemirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/unwind/the-river-flows-on/articleshow/67872673.cms {{DEFAULTSORT:Vyas, Chintaman Raghunath 1924 births 2002 deaths Hindustani singers Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award People from Osmanabad People from Marathwada 20th-century Indian singers Singers from Maharashtra