Told by	Pt.  Santosh Banerjee
Obtained by	Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee
Date	5th April, 2017
Place	Pt.  Santosh Banerjee’s  Residence , Kali Temple Road, Kolkata
About the speaker	Renowned Sitar Player, Formerly attached to the  Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University as a faculty member. One of the prime disciples of Ustad Dabir Khan.
Tags	Ali Akbar Khan, Allauddin Khan, Guru Bhai, Nara, Tansen Music Conference, Tabla, Dhamar, Gat, Shamta Prasad, Teen Taal, Drut, 1950’S, 1960’S
Language	Bengali

Pt. Santosh Banerjee Speaks :

 

Text version:

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Verbatim by: Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee

Translation:

Let me say a few words about Ali Akbar Khan, who was practically my Gurubhai. This was because; Ustad Allauddin Khan had wanted Ali Kabar khan to tie his Naara with Allauddin Khan’s own Guru’s family. So he kept Ali Akbar Khan for a few days at my Guru Dabir Khan’s place, who hailed from that family, so that the first Taalim came from him. That connection makes him my Guru Bhai.

He loves me very much, talks with me for a couple of hours whenever we meet, and urges me to take sweets and other food, a very cordial relation we share. I have also taken my wife to meet him, and he had welcomed her with great warmth, chatted with us for two or three hours.

Anyway, Ali Akbar Khan was a person who was oblivious to whoever was playing with him, or whatever he was playing.

It happened so at the Tanen Music conference, that Ali Akbar Khan had started to play with Pandit Shamta Prasad on the table. He completed the Alaap and started a Gat in Dhamaar at a very Vilambit laya. Shamta Prasad had to sit idle, playing only a theka and nothing else. Ali Akbar Khan, who always played with his head down, watched for some time, and then, with a smile, increased the Laya a little and went into Teen Taal, and asked Pt.  Pt. Shamta Prasad to play. I have been witness to this, this being in the 1960s.

Translation by: Arundhati Banerjee

Picture Courtesy: Google

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b&biw=1366&bih=631&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=MbMPW8yXOoSy9QO6jy8&q=ali+akbar+khan&oq=ali+akbar+&gs_l=img.1.0.0l10.3410873.3416488.0.3417904.10.9.0.1.1.0.204.1278.0j7j1.8.0….0…1c.1.64.img..1.9.1286…0i67k1j35i39k1j0i10k1j0i30k1.0.qyX_fs0W8VQ#imgdii=k5X7XxDb1mqveM:&imgrc=GS1NvC7WHAxnSM:

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b&biw=1366&bih=631&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=jMAPW_TQNJa-9QP5hon4Cw&q=pt+shamta+prasad&oq=pt+shamta+prasad&gs_l=img.3…591589.600977.0.601432.18.17.1.0.0.0.170.2285.0j16.16.0….0…1c.1.64.img..1.6.940…0j35i39k1j0i67k1j0i30k1j0i24k1.0.pFqM3HGQZdI#imgrc=TTRDKr0LloYkkM:

Edited & Designed: Ms. Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee

 

 

 

 

Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University.