Kesarbai Kerkar
This article needs additional citations for verification. (June 2008) |
Kesarbai Kerkar | |
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Khayal | |
Occupation(s) | Hindustani classical vocalist |
Years active | 1930-1964 |
Kesarbai Kerkar (13 July 1892 – 16 September 1977) was an Indian
She was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1953, followed by Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in India, in 1969.[5]
Biography
Early life and training
Born in the tiny village of Keri (also spelled "Querim"), in a family from
Meanwhile, Mumbai (then Bombay) under British Raj, was fast developing as a business and trade centre of the country. Several musicians and singers from North India and Central India, facing declining patronage from princely states started migrating to the city. At the age of 16, she too moved to Mumbai with her mother and uncle. A wealthy local businessman Seth Vitthaldas Dwarkadas helped her study under with Barkat Ullah Khan, sitar player and court musician at Patiala State. He taught her intermittently for two years, during his visit to the city. However, when Khan, became court musician at Mysore State, she trained under Bhaskarbuwa Bakhale (1869-1922) and Ramkrishnabuwa Vaze for short periods.[7]
Eventually ending up as disciple to
Career
Kerkar eventually achieved wide renown, performing regularly for aristocratic audiences. She was very particular about the representation of her work and consequently made only a few 78 rpm recordings, for the HMV and Broadcast labels. In time, Kerkar became an accomplished
Kerkar was awarded the 1953 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama, as the highest Indian recognition given to practicing artists[8] This was followed by the decoration of Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 1969,[9] and in the same year the government of the Indian state of Maharashtra conferred upon her the title of "Rajya Gayika." Indian Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) is said to have been very fond of Kerkar's singing. Her honorific title "Surashri" (or "Surshri") literally means "one with a mastery over notes" (sur meaning "notes" in Indian classical music and shri which is an honorific title used in this context as lord or master), and was bestowed on her in 1948 by the Sangeet Pravin Sangitanuragi Sajjan Saman Samiti of Calcutta. She retired from public singing in 1963–64.[6]
In her ancestral village of Keri, the Surashree Kesarbai Kerkar High School now occupies the site of Kerkar's former second home, and the house where she was born still stands, less than one kilometer away. A music festival called the Surashree Kesarbai Kerkar Smriti Sangeet Samaroha is held in Goa each November, by Kala Academy, Goa.[10] and a music scholarship in her name is awarded annually to a University of Mumbai student by National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) via Kesarbai Kerkar Scholarship Fund.[6] Unlike her Guru, Kerkar was not fond of teaching, and thus taught only one disciple, Dhondutai Kulkarni, who has previously learned from Ut. Bhurji Khan, the son of Alladiya Khan and Ut. Azizuddin Khan, grandson of Alladiya Khan.[11][12]
Kerkar has the further distinction of having one of her recordings, "Jaat Kahan Ho", duration 3:30 (an interpretation of
Since 2000, several CDs of her archival recordings have been released, including one on the Golden Milestones series, which contains several of her most famous songs.
Recordings
- Classical Vocal CD (2008) from Sangeet Natak Akademi
- Golden Milestones (2003)
- Vintage 78 Rpm Recording on CD
- Living Music of the Past CD from Underscore Records site
- Baithak Series – Live concert Recordings A set of 4 CDs Published by Sangeet Kendra
References
- ISBN 978-81-7154-685-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8240-4946-1.
- ISBN 978-0-86132-138-4.
- ^ Surashri Kesarbai Kerkar Archived 11 May 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 2009-12-27
- ^ "Padma Awards" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- ^ ISBN 978-81-7022-619-2.
- ^ a b "Kesarbai Kerkar". Underscore Records. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- ^ "SNA: List of Akademi Awardees". Sangeet Natak Akademi Official website. Archived from the original on 30 May 2015.
- ^ "Padma Awards Directory (1954–2013)" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2015.
- ^ "Surashree Kesarbai Kerkar Smriti Sangeet Samaroha". Kala Academy Goa. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- ^ Namita Devidayal (2 June 2014). "Dhondutai Kulkarni: A life steeped in simplicity, soaked in music". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-109-00342-0.
- ^ Laxman, Srinivas (7 August 2017). "40 years of Voyager-2: Indian music still resonates in space". The Times of India. Retrieved 10 August 2017.