The definitive biography of Ravi Shankar, one of the most influential
musicians and composers of the twentieth century, told with the
cooperation of his estate, family, and friends
For over eight
decades, Ravi Shankar was India's greatest cultural ambassador. He was a
groundbreaking performer and composer of Indian classical music, who
brought the music and rich culture of India to the world's leading
concert halls and festivals, charting the map for those who followed in
his footsteps. Renowned for playing Monterey Pop, Woodstock, and the
Concert for Bangladesh-and for teaching George Harrison of The Beatles
how to play the sitar-Shankar reshaped the musical landscape of the
1960s across pop, jazz, and classical music, and composed unforgettable
scores for movies like Pather Panchali and Gandhi.
In Indian Sun: The Life and Music of Ravi Shankar,
writer Oliver Craske presents readers with the first full portrait of
this legendary figure, revealing the personal and professional story of a
musician who influenced-and continues to influence-countless artists.
Craske paints a vivid picture of a captivating, restless workaholic-from
his lonely and traumatic childhood in Varanasi to his youthful stardom
in his brother's dance troupe, from his intensive study of the sitar to
his revival of India's national music scene. Shankar's musical influence
spread across both genres and generations, and he developed close
friendships with John Coltrane, Philip Glass, Yehudi Menuhin, George
Harrison, and Benjamin Britten, among many others. For ninety-two years,
Shankar lived an endlessly colorful and creative life, a life defined
by musical, emotional, and spiritual quests-and his legacy lives on.
Benefiting
from unprecedented access to Shankar's archives, and drawing on new
interviews with over 130 subjects-including his second wife and both of
his daughters, Norah Jones and Anoushka Shankar- Indian Sun gives readers unparalleled insight into a man who transformed modern music as we know it today.
One of Library Journal's "Best Arts Books of 2020"
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