Anuradha Pal

Anuradha Pal
Origin Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Genres Hindustani classical music, World Fusion Music, Percussion
Occupation(s) Tabla Virtuoso
Instruments Tabla
Labels Sur aaur Saaz
Website www.anuradhapal.com

Anuradha Pal[1] is a Tabla virtuoso, multi-percussionist and music composer who has been hailed as the first professional female tabla player by the Encyclopædia Britannica, Who’s Who Journal of the World and the Limca Book of Records.[2]

A disciple of tabla legends Late Ustad Alla Rakha and Zakir Hussain, Anuradha Pal is the youngest and only female Indian musician to have performed at the prestigious Woodstock Festival in 2008, where she performed with her acclaimed world music band Recharge,[3] for an audience of 400,000 people.

Career

Pal has performed extensively at some of the most prestigious music festivals in the world, like Woodstock, WOMAD, Voices of the World, Night of the Virtuosos, Rhythm Sticks Festival and Masters of Indian Music Festival; amongst numerous others in the US, UK, Europe, Japan, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Far East.

She became the first and the youngest woman Indian musician to perform at the WOMAD Festival in 1999, where she presented her band Stree Shakti[4] - Asia’s first and much acclaimed all-female, percussion based vocal-instrumental ensemble, for 150,000 fans.

She has performed sensational tabla solos and has accompanied some of the best musicians of India such as Pt. Jasraj, Pt. Shivkumar Sharma, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Smt. Girija Devi, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Ustad Sultan Khan, Ustad Shahid Parvez, Pt. Vishwa Mohan Bhatt; younger musicians like Rahul Sharma, Niladri Kumar, Rakesh Chaurasia, as well as, acclaimed jazz, Latin and African musicians in major Indian and international festivals.

She has also performed with renowned international musicians. Recently, she performed at the Global Fusion Concert in Dubai with the classical crossover string quartet Bond,[5] jazz drummer Sherrie Maricle, saxophonist Sharel Cassity, flamenco dancer Concepcion Jareno and guitarist Antonia Jimenez;[6] and ney artist Burcu Karadag.[7]

Anuradha Pal composed the background score for M.F. Husain’s film; Gaja Gamini; which was highly appreciated at the Cannes Film Festival for its originality and evocativeness. She has also composed music for short films, documentaries, theatre and other commissioned work and events.

Anuradha was invited as an artist-in-residence, at the New England Conservatory and Berkeley School of Music. She contributed actively in the research of the "Relationship between Brain, Music & Language" at Neurosciences University, San Diego and the 'Study of Tabla, Aesthetics & Complexities' at the Harvard Science Center.

Awards and media recognition

Anuradha Pal has received several awards.

BBC Radio World Service Program featured her as one of the "Five Prominent Women Musicians of India" in 1991 and as "one of the World’s youth Icons & trendsetters" in 2008.

Doordarshan National Archives featured her in a film titled Woman of Substance in 2006.

Times Now channel featured her in a documentary titled All About Her in 2004.

Adventure Divas by the American Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) made a film featuring Anuradha Pal as "one of the great women achievers of India and the World" in 2001.

Films Division of India featured her in the documentary titled Aaj ki Nari in 1999.

Personal

Anuradha Pal resides in Mumbai.

Discography

References

  1. ↑ http://www.anuradhapal.com
  2. ↑ http://www.anuradhapal.com/biography.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.anuradhapal.com/ANURADHAPALs_RECHARGE.html
  4. ↑ http://www.anuradhapal.com/STREE_SHAKTI.html
  5. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTln9T3A52A
  6. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3XGTchailc
  7. ↑ http://www.albawaba.com/business/pr/all-women-line-captivates-audience-global-fusion-410688

External links