Kishan Maharaj
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2008}}
{{Infobox person
| image = File:Portrait of Priyaranjan Dasmunsi felicitating noted Tabla Maestro Pandit Kishan Maharaj with Life time Award at the annual concert of Shakhri Begum Memorial Trust at Science city Auditorium, Calcutta on December 9, 2006 (cropped).jpg
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| honorific_prefix = Pandit
| name = Kishan Maharaj
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| birth_name = Kishan Hari Maharaj
| birth_date = 3 September 1923
| birth_place = Kabir Chaura, Benares, United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, British India
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2008|05|04|1923|09|03}}
| death_place = Khajuri, Uttar Pradesh, India
| years_active = 1934-2008
| occupation = Hindustani Classical Tabla player
| nationality = Indian
| parents = Hari Maharaj (father)
Anjora Devi (mother)
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| module = {{Infobox musical artist
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| instrument = Tabla
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Pandit Kishan Maharaj (3 September 1923 – 4 May 2008) was an Indian tabla player who belonged to the Benares gharana of Hindustani classical music.{{cite news |title=Pt Kishan Maharaj: End of an era|author= Shovana Narayan|author-link= Shovana Narayan|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2008/20080506/nation.htm#16 |newspaper=The Tribune |date=6 May 2008}}{{cite web|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?237527|title=Perfect Fourths: Pt Kishan Maharaj and his subtle, thinking tabla was our last link to the quartet of greats|date=26 May 2008|publisher=Outlook}}
Early life and background
Maharaj was born to a Brahmin family of hereditary musicians in Kabir Chaura, Benaras. His father was Hari Maharaj and his mother was Anjora Devi. He was adopted by his father's older brother, Kanthe Maharaj, who did not have children of his own.{{cite book |last1=Simpson McDaniel |first1=Alonzo |title=The Absorption of Hydrocarbon Gases by Non-aqueous Liquids |date=1990 |publisher=the University of Wisconsin - Madison |page=289-291}}
Maharaj's musical guidance was initiated by his father. Maharaj was six years old when his father died. Afterwards, Maharaj's musical training continued with Kanthe Maharaj and lasted for give years.
Musical career
File:Indian musicians at the first music conference after India's independence.jpg
Maharaj began performing in concerts by age 11. He moved to Bombay in 1944 to pursue a music career and initially struggled. He provided tabla accompaniment to Sitara Devi in the Hindi film Badi Maa (1945).
Within a few years, Kishan Maharaj was sharing the stage with leading classical musicians like Faiyaz Khan, Omkarnath Thakur, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Bhimsen Joshi, Ravi Shankar, Ali Akbar Khan, Vasant Rai, Vilayat Khan, Girija Devi, and many others.
Celebrated as a leading tabla soloist, Maharaj also gave sangat to dancers like Shambhu Maharaj, Sitara Devi, Gopi Krishna, and Birju Maharaj.
Maharaj also performed alongside celebrated tabla maestros like Samta Prasad (his uncle), Alla Rakha, and Karamatullah Khan.
His Taal Vadya Kacheri performances with Carnatic percussionist Palghat R. Raghu were celebrated.{{cite news |last1=Nadkarni |first1=Mohan |title=Sitar-Sarod Jugalbandi: Synthesis Of Tradition And Experiment |url=https://mohannadkarni.org/sitar-sarod-jugalbandi/ |publisher=The Bombay Sentinel |date=February 1, 1958}}
Among all his compositions, his "Tala Vadya Kacheri" with the Mridangam Vidwan, "Palghat Raghu" stood out. Maharaj extensively toured and participated in several prestigious events across the world, including the Edinburgh Festival and the Commonwealth Arts festival in the United Kingdom in 1965. He has toured across the UK, USSR, Switzerland, Poland, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia.
Artistry
Death
Maharaj died on 4 May 2008 at Khajuri near Varanasi, aged 84.{{cite news|title=Tabla maestro Kishan Maharaj dead |work=Press Trust of India; The Hindu |date=2008-05-05 |url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/009200805051040.htm |access-date=2009-05-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104082154/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/009200805051040.htm |archive-date= 4 November 2012 }}
Legacy
Maharaj trained many disciples, several of whom have become prominent musicians. This includes:
Personal life
In 1947, Maharaj married Veena Devi, the daughter of Anokhelal Mishra's older brother. They have a son, Pooran Maharaj, who is also a tabla player.
Awards and recognition
Maharaj was awarded the Padma Shri in 1973 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2002.{{cite web|title=Padma Awards|publisher=Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (India)|url=http://india.gov.in/myindia/advsearch_awards.php?start=0&award_year=&state=&field=3&p_name=Maharaj&award=All|access-date=2009-05-25}} He was married to Beena devi, niece of a Tabla maestro of the Benaras Gharana, Pandit Anokhe Lal Mishra.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.varanasi.org.in/pandit-kishan-maharaj]
{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Art}}
{{Padma Vibhushan Awards}}
{{SangeetNatakAkademiFellowship}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maharaj, Kishan}}
Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
Category:Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in arts
Category:Hindustani instrumentalists
Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Category:Musicians from Varanasi
Category:20th-century Indian musicians
Category:20th-century drummers
Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship
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