ARUP CHATTERJEE the reputed sitarist virtuoso belongs to the Senia Gharana and was initiated and groomed into the art by Pandit Aparash Chatterjee, Pandir Nikhil Banerjee and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan Saheb. He is associated with A Grade Artist A.I.R. and Television. Based on dhrupad and alap styles. Emplaned artist ICCR established category.
ARUP CHATTERJEE’s sitar is a unique vehicle for serious and ancient ragas. ARUP CHATTERJEE has almost out of necessity conferred of his instrument certain virtues and dimensions that were never there. The heavy bass sound of his sitar immediately recalls to one’s mind the rare nuances of the ween and the dulcet tones of the sitar and it was played twenty years ago. But ARUP CHATTERJEE did something more. After serious alapas he chose to make journeys into the most intricate Labyrinths of tala or beat. To make this possible he had first to make the sitar pliable in the sheer technical sense. But an exploration of Late is only possible through a certain sublimation of laya on rhythm. And who doesn’t know that ARUP CHATTERJEE is one of the greatest Layadar artistes our music had ever had?
Technicalities aside, ARUP CHATTERJEE is a great analyst of the raga. For every note and his associate grace, ARUP CHATTERJEE has his own rationale. A rationale that springs from both Talim and research. Therefore, what thrills his knowledgeable audiences all the time is the characteristic note progression which, heightens the drama of any phase pf alap yel.
ARUP CHATTERJEE is hardly ever prolix some of his intellectual phrasings are superb understatements. Listeners who believe rage music should the maestro have biended asoetic exactitude. By all means a rare thing, ARUP CHATTERJEE excels in rich, wide ragas like Darbari, Malkauns, Puria Kalyan, Yaman, Hem Behag and Bageshri.
His knowledge of folk music is deep. His repertory of talas ranging from Dhamar, chautal and pancham sawati is indeed fantastic. |