Professor
Ramhari Das
ରାମହରି ଦାସ
Guru Ramhari Das performing at Rajarani Music Festival 2021
Background information
Birth nameRamhari Das
Born(1953-02-01)1 February 1953
Kanpur, Balasore, Odisha
GenresOdissi music
OccupationsOdissi music Guru, singer, professor, scholar, musicologist, composer
Awards: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award 2008

Pandit Ramhari Das (Odia: ରାମହରି ଦାସ, romanized: Rāmahari Dāsa, Odia: [raːmɔhɔri d̪aːsɔ] ⓘ; born 1953) is a leading singer, composer, musicologist and Guru of Odissi music.[1] Known for his renditions, compositions, lecture-demonstrations and writings,[2] Das has served as a professor and led the Odissi vocal department in prominent musical institutions of Odisha, including the Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya and the Utkal University of Culture.[3][2] He is the founder of Ramhari Das Odissi Gurukula at Biragobindapur, Puri.[4] For his contributions to Odissi music, Das received the Sangeet Natak Akademi award in 2008.[3][5]

Life

Born in 1953 in Balasore, Das started his initial training in Odissi music from his uncle Radhakrushna Das and Guru Prafulla Kumar Sur.[2] He continued under Gurus including Markandeya Mahapatra, Balakrushna Das, Bhikari Charan Bal and Gopal Chandra Panda as a student in the Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya.[1][4] He later served as a lecturer in the same institution and then as the head of the Odissi music department from 1985 to 2010.[3] He is a leading singer and composer of Odissi music. Besides solo recitals and vocal accompaniment in dance, he has won acclaim for composing a large number of songs for Odissi dance and dance-dramas. Outside of these, he has sung for Odia films and television serials.[1]

Among his published writings are the books Odissi Sangitara Parampara O Prayoga, Sangita Sangya, Alankara Ratnabali and Kala Sikhya (published by the Board of Secondary Education, Odisha).[6][7][8] Das has several research papers & articles to his credit and has presented in various seminars & conferences across the nation.[1][9][10][11] He has also received a Senior Research Fellowship from the Government of India for his research on Odissi music.[12] He has been connected in various capacities with cultural instiutions in Odisha, including the Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi, the Utkal University of Culture, where he served as the head of the Odissi vocal department and the Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Research Centre, where he served as the chief executive.[1][3][13] He is one of the chief architects of Sangita Sudhakara Balakrushna Dash foundation that organises an annual three-day festival of Odissi music.[14]

Guru Ramhari Das' Odissi Sangita Pathasala is a series of graded lessons on Odissi music available for free on YouTube, in which Das himself teaches the history of Odissi music, core musical concepts, shastras (treatises) with an individual treatment of ragas and songs.[15]

Institution

Das presenting a paper in a conference organised by Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi

Das is acclaimed for his efforts to develop musical awareness and education in Odisha. He has conducted Odissi music recitals in several educational institutions through SPIC MACAY.[2]

He has established the Ramhari Das Odissi Gurukula in the village of Biragobindapura in the Puri district.[4] The Gurukula is a training-cum-research institute that imparts education in Odissi music & dance and organises workshops & seminars.[2] Students are trained in Odissi classical vocal, Odissi Mardala and Odissi Bina (Veena) by Guru Ramhari Das, Guru Dhaneswar Swain & Guru Ramarao Patra respectively. It is the only institution in the state that imparts training in Odissi Bina (Veena).[16] An annual festival called Gurukula Utsav is conducted to showcase diverse facets of Odissi music through curated performances.[17]

Ramhari Das giving a lecture-demonstration on Odissi music

Awards and honours

Das has received various titles and awards including the central and Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi awards.[1]

  • Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2008)[3][2][5]
  • Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2008)[18]
  • Orissa Dance Academy, Bhubaneswar[3]
  • Utkal Sahitya Kala Parishad, Cuttack[3]
  • Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Samman, awarded by the President of India[2]
  • Guru Singhari Samman from Guru Gopal Panda Odissi Academy, Bhubaneswar[19]
  • Jadumani Das Saraswata Pratibha Samman (2017)
  • Guru Sahadev Padhi Memorial Award (2019)

Published works

  • Odissi Sangitara Parampara O Prayoga (2004)[6]
  • Sangita Sangya (1989‌)[7]
  • Alankara Ratnabali (1984)[8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Shrestha Bharat Sanskriti Samagam : A festival of Music, Dance, Drama, Folk, Tribal Arts, Puppetry & Allied Traditions. Bhubaneswar, Odisha: Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi ; Odia Language, Literature & Culture Department, Government of Odisha ; Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi, Odisha. 2018. p. 10.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Vidyarthi, Nita (17 October 2013). "Raising his voice". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ramhari Das". Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 "About Guru Ramhari Das". Ramhari Das Odissi Gurukula. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  5. 1 2 "Award for 3 Orissa artistes". The Hindu. 12 January 2009. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  6. 1 2 Das, Ramhari (2004). Odissi Sangeetara Parampara O Prayoga ଓଡ଼ିଶୀ ସଙ୍ଗୀତର ପରମ୍ପରା ଓ ପ୍ରୟୋଗ (in Odia). Bhubaneswar, Odisha: Kaishikee Prakashani.
  7. 1 2 Das, Ramhari (2015) [1st ed. 1989]. Sangeet Sangya ସଙ୍ଗୀତ ସଂଜ୍ଞା (in Odia) (4th ed.). Badahata, Biragobindapur, Sakhigopal, Puri.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. 1 2 Das, Ramhari (1984). Alankara Ratnabali ଅଳଙ୍କାର ରତ୍ନାବଳୀ (in Odia). Bhubaneswar, Odisha: Kaishikee Prakashani.
  9. ↑ "Shreshtha Bharat Sanskriti Samagam" (PDF). Sangeet Natak Akademi. 10 July 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  10. ↑ Chakra, Shyamhari (11 July 2018). "'Classical tag to Odishi music long overdue'". The Pioneer. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  11. ↑ "Art forms merge on single platform". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  12. ↑ "List of selected candidates for award of Senior & Junior Fellowships for 2012-13" (PDF). India Culture, Government of India. 2012–13. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  13. ↑ Minati Singha (2 August 2013). "Odissi music must get classical tag: Ramahari Das | Bhubaneswar News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  14. ↑ "An evening in memory of Odissi music legend". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  15. ↑ Das, Ramhari. "Pathshala - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  16. ↑ "72-year-old Veena player of Odisha reviving the glory of the instrument". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  17. ↑ "Gurukul Utsav – a befitting birthday bash for Guru Ramahari Das". The Samikhsya. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  18. ↑ "Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademy Award Winners (1970-2012)" (PDF). Odisha Reference Annual - 2011. Government of Odisha: 104–108. 2011.
  19. ↑ Das, Ramhari (2019). "Guru Gopal Panda Odissi Academy". YouTube.
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