Taranath Rao
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Taranath Ram Rao Hattiangadi (1915-1991) was a performer and pedagogue of Indian classical percussion, known for his knowledge of rare talas and old compositons. He represented the Farukhabad, Delhi, and Ajrada gharanas of tabla, and the Nana Panse tradition of pakhavaj. He studied formally for 47 years--an exceptional amount of time, even in the Indian master-disciple system--under many pandits and ustads, most notably Shamsuddin Khan. He had numerous disciples and students of special training.
[edit] Education
Taranath's most significant studenship was under Shamsuddin Khan, the distinguished gurubhai of Ahmedjan Thirakwa and main accompanist to Kirana gharana vocalist Abdul Karim Khan. He also learned from Subbarao Ankolekar, Vishnu Goakar, "Layabhaskar" Khaprumama of Goa, Fayaz Khan of Kanpur, Shankarao Alkutkar, Baburao Ghokle, and Kallu Khan, all noted percussionists.
[edit] Teaching and performance
Taranath moved from his native Mangalore to Bombay (now Mumbai) in 1932, and for decades was a scion of that city's music scene--first as a performer and concert organizer, and later, as his health declined, a musical mentor and authority. He frequently gave solo performances and lectures on All India Radio, and was honored in courtly traditions by the Maharajas of Mysore, Kolhapur, Baroda and Savantwadi. Rao provided counsel and speciality training to a number of already established artsits-- many of whom were preparing to play with Ravi Shankar--such as the brilliant Chatur Lal.
Taranath accompanied many raga masters: Ravi Shankar, Enayat Khan, Amir Khan, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, the senior Dagar Brothers, the Salamat and Nazakat Ali of Pakistan, Sawai Gandharva, Bhimsen Joshi, Kumar Gandharva, Kishanrao Shankar Pandit, Mallikarjun Mansur, Aftab-e-Mousiqi Fayyaz Khan, Abdul Karim Khan, Rais Khan, and Ali Akbar Khan are just a few. He was respected for his close ties with some of the most important instrumentalists, like Allaudin Khan--whose early Bombay concerts he was influential in arranging--Ravi Shankar--for whom he was an original accompanist--and the revolutionary flautist Pannalal Ghosh. Taranath's friendship and scholarship were also sought by the giants of the Bombay tabla world, like Amir Hussain Khan, Pandharinath Nageshkar, Nikhil Ghosh, and Nizamuddin Khan, and he had the honorable privilege of being a confidant of the unparalleled Ahmedjan Thirakwa.
Taranath Rao was a venerable curator of Indian percussion, but is also remembered for his innovative approach to the drums, his modern outlook on classical music, and his sincere, systematic teaching style. He was a pioneer of tabla jugulbandi and other contemporary features of tabla solo. In addition to private tuitions from his home in Bombay, Taranath taught and lectured at many instituitions like Ravi Shankar's Kinarra School, Bhatkande University (Bombay and Lucknow), and the Kala Academy in Goa.
For the last 12 years of his life, Taranath taught at CalArts in Los Angeles, where his younger brother Harihar Rao was heading the Ravi Shankar Music Circle. It is said that anyone who learned from him, even if for a little while, retained a love for Indian classical music. Taranath Rao had hundreds of students around the world, the most notable being Ravi Bellare, Shashi Bellare, Sadanand Naimpalli, Omkar Gulvady, Mohan Balvally, Vijay Kangutkar, Balakrishna Iyer, Jayawant Bantwal, Jef Feldman, Peter Fagiola, Roland Drugemuller, Gregg Johnson, Bengt Berger, and Leonice Shinneman. His tradition is carried on by the Peshkar Foundation.
