Anjan Chattopadhyay Biography In English
Birth Details –
Place- Calcutta
Nationality -Indian
Family –
Brother – Gaurishankar Chattopadhyay
Teacher – Kalyani Roy, Shaukat Ali Khan
Early Life –
- Sitar player Anjan Chattopadhyay was born in Calcutta into a family of culture and aristocracy. He was brought up in an environment of soft, melodious and serene Indian classical music.
- His elder brother Pandit Gaurishankar Chattopadhyay is a renowned surbahar and sitar player belonging to the Senia Gharana. His early training in the sitar could leave an indelible mark on Anjan’s mind regarding the instrument’s depth in sound and melody.
- Also taking initial singing training from his elder sister. Anjan began to feel the fragrance and vibration of life in music.
- He became more committed to his music and progress in sitar playing began strictly under the strict guidance of his brother.
Career-
- At the age of nine, Anjan gave his first performance in 1969 at a conference in Calcutta to a tepid appraisal of the critics.
- As the days passed, Anjan’s love for music grew and he felt the call of his heart to dive deep into the vast ocean of music. To learn and acquire the rhythmic part of music, he became a disciple of Tabla magician Ustad Shaukat Ali Khan.
- To advance in the stream of sitar playing, he became a disciple of world-renowned sitar maestro Surashree Kalyani Roy, who was one of the senior most students of Aftab-e-Sitar Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan, the pioneer of modern-day sitar playing. .
- To understand the serene and sublime mood of the music, Anjan realized that his sitar should be sung like a singer. So he started learning vocal music under the tutelage of Mr. Muktipada Dutta, a representative of the Agra Gharana.
- Thus Anjan reached the root of the music to pick up the precious gems. Vast and timeless training has inspired Anjan to become a performer whose every bold stroke in the hard strings can express excellence in each and every performance.
- His ability to strike a balance between technical verbosity and aesthetic elegance on the one hand, and his sense of symmetry and logic in his musical endeavors on the other, have amazed connoisseurs.
Performance
Anjan has performed in hundreds of concerts in India and abroad. Some of his concerts in India worthy of mention are:-
- Dover Lane Music Conference
- India International Centre, New Delhi
- All India Music Festival
- Time-of-Artists Music Conference, Mumbai
- Salt Lake Music Conference
- National Council of Performing Arts, Mumbai
- West Bengal Government State Music Academy
- Indian Council for Cultural Relations
- Alliance Francaise
- Ustad Bahadur Khan Music Conference
- Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram
- South Bengal Music Conference
- Ustad Keramtullah Khan Memorial Conference
- Indian Council of Culture, Nagpur
- Jhankar Music Circle, Kolkata
- Swami Haridas Sangeet Sammelan
- Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Calcutta
- Raipur Music Festival, M.P.
- Ustad Amir Khan Music Conference, Calcutta
- Swar Sadhana Samiti, Mumbai
- Sur Singar Sansad, Mumbai
- Kalabharti, Mumbai
- Pandit Montu Banerjee Memorial Music Conference
- Sangeet Natak Academy, Lucknow
- Sankalp Music Festival, M.P.
- Guru Purnima Festival, Patna
- Compatibility Center
- Vistaar Sangeet Sammelan, Kolkata
- Camp Vatsyayan, Banaras
Awards
- 1987 – Title of Surmani
- 1988 – Sangeet Visharad
- 1988 – Sangeet Kriya Visharad
- 1994 – Padma Bhushan
- 2007 – Michael Madhusudan Dutt
Question Related to Anjan Chattopadhyay
What is the birth place of Anjan Chattopadhyay?
Anjan Chattopadhyay was born in Calcutta.
What was the name of Anjan Chattopadhyay’s brother?
Anjan Chattopadhyay’s brother’s name was Gaurishankar Chattopadhyay.
Who was the teacher of Anjan Chattopadhyay?
Anjan Chattopadhyay’s Guru’s name was Kalyani Roy, Shaukat Ali Khan.
Anjan Chattopadhyay was honored with which award?
Anjan Chattopadhyay was honored with the title of Surmani, Sangeet Visharad, Sangeet Kriya Visharad, Padma Bhushan, Michael Madhusudan Dutt Award.
