Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia (born 1 July 1938) is an Indian classical musician and the foremost player of the bansuri, the North Indian bamboo flute. He raised a simple folk instrument to the front rank of Hindustani classical music and has performed across the world for more than six decades. With the santoor player Shivkumar Sharma he also composed music for Hindi films as “Shiv–Hari”. He received the Padma Vibhushan in 2000.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Hariprasad Chaurasia |
| Born | 1 July 1938, Allahabad (now Prayagraj), Uttar Pradesh, India |
| Age | 88 |
| Instrument | Bansuri (bamboo flute) |
| Genre | Hindustani classical music |
| Teachers | Pandit Rajaram, Bholanath Prasanna, Annapurna Devi |
| Spouse | Kamala Devi; Anuradha Roy |
| Honours | Padma Bhushan (1992), Padma Vibhushan (2000) |
| Known for | Call of the Valley, Shiv–Hari film scores |
Early Life
Chaurasia’s father was a wrestler who wanted his son to follow him into the akhara. His mother died when he was a small child. He trained at the wrestling pit as his father wished, which he says gave him the lung power and stamina for the flute, but he secretly learned vocal music from a neighbour, Pandit Rajaram, from the age of fifteen and then switched to the flute under Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi.
Career
In 1957 he joined All India Radio at Cuttack in Odisha as a composer and performer, and he was later transferred to Bombay. There he sought out Annapurna Devi, the reclusive daughter of Ustad Allauddin Khan. She agreed to teach him only if he unlearned what he knew; to show his commitment he switched from playing right-handed to left-handed, which he has done ever since.
The 1967 album Call of the Valley, recorded with Shivkumar Sharma and the guitarist Brij Bhushan Kabra, became one of the best-selling Indian classical records and introduced many listeners to the music. Chaurasia developed techniques that let the bansuri play the slow, detailed alap of classical ragas. He has worked with Western musicians such as John McLaughlin and Jan Garbarek and with Zakir Hussain.
For Yash Chopra the duo composed the music of Silsila (1981), Chandni (1989), Lamhe (1991) and Darr (1993).
He headed the Indian music department at the Rotterdam Conservatory in the Netherlands for many years and founded the Vrindaban Gurukul in Mumbai in 2006 and in Bhubaneswar in 2010, where students live and learn in the traditional way without paying fees.
Awards and Honours
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where was Hariprasad Chaurasia born?
Hariprasad Chaurasia was born on 1 July 1938 in Allahabad (now Prayagraj), Uttar Pradesh, India and is 88 years old.
What is Hariprasad Chaurasia known for?
Known for: Call of the Valley, Shiv–Hari film scores.
What honours has Hariprasad Chaurasia received?
Padma Bhushan (1992), Padma Vibhushan (2000).
Featured image: Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia performs at Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bengaluru, March 2010. Photo by Kayaniv, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
