THE MEDIEVAL INDIAN MUSIC ENSEMBLE

December 4, 2011, 2:00 pm

TheRenaissanceCenter*

650 East Pleasant Street, Amherst,MA01002, 413-577-3600,  www.umass.edu/renaissance

The Program:

Mr. Greig will present a short talk on the topic of Indian music in the 16^th c. Following this introductory discussion, J. Andrew will play the Tambur. Mr. Row will then demonstrate some courtly music on the Rudra Vina, with J. Andres accompanying on the drone Tambur and the frame drum Daf. Krishna Kant Shukla will sing several songs from the period. Accompanying him will be drone Tambur, Daf, and various other musical implements. Indian music is improvised. And, as old as it is, it is always new!

The Musicians:

J. Andrew Greig started learning North Indian music on the Sitar in 1966 in New York  City.  He holds a M.A. in South Asian studies from the University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies, and a Ph.D. in South Asian history at UCLA.  Both focused on music; his pioneering dissertation examined music in the 16^th century, using Persian, Sanskrit, and iconographic sources.  He has studied Sitar with Ustad Imrat Khan, and Rudra Vina with Ustad Asad Ali Khan, who was the last exponent of the Khandarbani Dhrupad tradition.  Sandy will be playing a variety of instruments representing Central Asian performance traditions, some of which he imbibed as a career cultural attaché in the U.S. Foreign Service.  He is currently a Visiting Fellow at the Renaissance Center, working on a book on 16^th Century music from northernIndia, and co-founder of the Medieval Indian Music Ensemble.

Peter Row, performer on Sitar and Rudra Vina, is a member of the faculty of New England Conservatory in Boston, where he teaches Indian music.  He also served as Dean (1983-1990) and Provost (1990-1996 and 2000-2004) in that premier institution.  Peter studied Sitar and Rudra Vina in Kolkata, India (1965-1973) with Pandit Gokul Nag of the Vishnupur Gharana and obtained the Bachelor of Music, Master of Music and Doctor of Music (Sangitacharya), from the Prayag Sangit Samiti in Allahabad, India.  Peter has performed in concert throughout North America and India and has made numerous radio and television appearances. A former president of the Northeast Chapter of the Society of Ethnomusicology, he is widely published and has lectured about Indian music across the U.S. He was the recipient of a JDR Fund Fellowship for doctoral studies in India. Peter is joined this afternoon by his son, Andrew.  He is co-founder of the Medieval Indian Music Ensemble.

Krishna Kant Shukla, MIME’s guest artist, is a renaissance man; having studied in India and U.K, he obtained a M.S. and Ph.D. at the SUNY Buffalo in solid state physics.  He then left academics to follow his heart and return to India to explore India’s living oral folk musical traditions, especially devotional music.  He counts Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Pandit Kumar Gandharva as his most important musical mentors.  His travels have taken him into remote villages from the Himalayan foothills to far-flung settlements in the central plains.  He is particularly moved by the songs of Kabir, the quattrocento poet-saint. and those in the much older lineage of Gorakhnath.  Krishna Shukla has performed to acclaim in India and the U.S.  He is an empanelled artist with the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, the India’s national cultural service.  The Medieval Indian Music Ensemble is fortunate to have him appear with them at this event.

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Dr. Krishnakant Shukla

Poetry of the Saints & Sages of India

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Dr. Krishnakant Shukla

Devotional Music & Poetry of India: Songs of the Saint-Poets

sung by

sung by

Dr. Krishnakant Shukla

(on tour from Varanasi, India)

Monday, August 22, 07:00 p.m.

Venue: Eternal Eden Healing Center, 10750 W. 66th Ave. Arvada, CO 80004

(Free & Open to the Public)

Come enjoy a beautiful evening of music, poetry and Kirtan with Dr. Krishna Kant Shulka from India. I saw him perform a number of times in Maui and his music is wonderful. He shares the poetry of Kabir interlaced with classical Indian musical pieces. He also has original songs and plays interactive Kirtan.

Here are some links to videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQyA5bTPvYw

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2711913218003937168#

.. more about him on his website: www.krishnakantshukla.com

We are also looking for a tabla player and someone who would like to play his tambura. Please contact me at  or  if you are interested.

Also, please RSVP to the event if possible.

Location: Eternal Eden Healing Center, Arvada, CO

10750 W. 66th Ave. Arvada, CO 80004

For questions please call 303-588-2963 or email @: linda.l.green1@gmail.com

sung by

Dr. Krishnakant Shukla

(on tour from Varanasi, India)

Saturday, May 14, 07:30 p.m.

Venue: Air Force Auditorium , Subroto Park, New Delhi, India

(Free & Open to the Association of IT-BHU Alumni members)

Krishna Kant Shukla gave up his job as assistant professor of astronomy at an American college and returned to his native India to live his dream of singing bhajans (Indian devotional songs expressing love for the Divine). A distinguished lecturer with a Ph.D. in solid state physics now turned musician, his love for Varanasi, oldest living city in the world and holy city of India, and his passion for music “combine to serve as his breath for survival”. “Time stands still in Varanasi” Dr. Kant Shukla has said

and “music is in my blood,… singing makes me come alive”. His bhajan performances at various cities in India have won him accolades. He has performed at the London Mela as a distinguished guest of the Mayor of London, but of more particular interest to Baba lovers is that Krishna has sung for Meher Baba’s old disciples at Meherazad, where, according to Meherabad resident Peter Booth, his “performance was one of the most moving and powerful I have experienced in thirty years.”

More about KRISHNAKANT SHUKLA: While teaching Physics and Astronomy as an assistant professor in upstate New York, Dr. Shukla decided to quit academics and follow his heart and soul deep into the fathomless waters of Indian Classical Music. Having studied with great maestros like Srimati Laxmi Shankar, Ustaad Ali Akbar Khan, and Dr. Tapan Bhattacharya, he returned to India in 1994 to explore the roots of Indian Classical Music in the great living oral folk traditions. His musical search led him into remote villages in the Himalayan foothills, as well as far flung and difficult to reach dwellings in the central plains. He has been particularly influenced by the songs of Kabir, Gorakhnath, and other nirguna bhakti poet-saints—songs that have been sung as part of a living oral tradition that is over six hundred years old.

Dr. Shukla’s repertoire includes compositions of Tyagaraja, Tulsidas, Surdas, Meera, Tukaram, Purandardas and other poet-saints of India, as well as the musical compositions of Sufi saints. He has also been researching, recording and performing the folk songs of rural northern India, which, according to him, is an art form of unparalleled beauty which is fast becoming extinct.

Dr. Shukla has performed widely in India and has recently toured the U.S. . He has been recognized as a singer of devotional music by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, an agency of the central government that supports artists to represent India culture abroad. More details are there on the website www.krishnakantshukla.org

Location: Air Force Auditorium , Subroto Park, New Delhi, India

For questions please email: aiba@itbhuglobal.org

]]> http://www.krishnakantshukla.org/?feed=rss2&p=433 6 http://www.krishnakantshukla.org/?p=405 http://www.krishnakantshukla.org/?p=405#comments Wed, 02 Mar 2011 01:23:42 +0000 admin http://www.krishnakantshukla.com/?p=405

Moderated by Dragon Den Director, Dr. Malik Cotter, these two revolutionary Seekers come together for a provocative discussion into the heart & soul of spiritual awakening.
As one of the more revolutionary Futurists, Peter Russell has been a keynote speaker at many international conferences in Europe, Japan and the US. His multi-image shows and videos, “The Global Brain” and “The White Hole in Time” have won praise and prizes from around the world. In 1993 th environmental magazine BUZZWORM voted him “Eco-Philosopher Extraordinaire” of the Year.

The British author of 10 books, including best seller “The Global Brain”, and Producer of 3 films on consciousness, spiritual awakening and their role in the future development of humanity, has designed and taught corporate personal development programs focused on creativity, stress management and sustainable environmental practices. His notable clients are IBM, Apple, Digital, American Express, Barclays Bank, Swedish Telecom, ICI, Shell Oil and British Petroleum

Special Musician Guests: India’s Krishna Kant Shukla & Daniel Paul

Monsoon Indian Cuisine Buffet & Maui Kombucha Teas following the program.

Suggested Donation $20 (includes buffet) Bring a Friend and Bring Your Aloha.

More information: Ram Dass | Peter Russell | Dr Malik Cotter | Krishna Kant Shukla | Daniel Paul

Concert Photos