India is blessed with some of the talented musicians who have shown the nation that the county is always a step ahead not only in terms of culture, sports and other areas but also in terms of music. There are number of musicians who have taken birth in this beautiful world and are enriched with talent in music but yes! India is no way away in terms of all genres of music.
Here is the list of famous Indian Classical Musicians . These musicians are considered as great musicians of all the time.
10. Ustad Ali Akbar Khan
This famous Hindustani classical musician was born in the year 1922. He played a great role in popularizing the classical music all over the world. He was famous for his brilliant compositions and his knowledge of the sarode. This famous musician has played a great role both as a performer and as a teacher. He was nominated for five gammy awards and was awarded as India’s second highest civilian honor, the Padma Vibhushan, in the year 1989. His journey ended and this famous musician died in the year 2009.
9. MS Subbulakshmi
This famous classical musician was legendry in carnatic music. She was born in the year 1916. She was famous for rendering devotional songs, known as the Nightingale of India. She started learning music at a very early age and made her first debut song at the age of eight. After her debut entry, she performed at various concerts and started advancing her career. She was the first Indian to receive Ramon Magsaysay award in the year 1974. She was also the recipient of Padma Bhushan award in the year 1954 and Padma Vibhushan award in the year 1975 followed by many more awards.
8. Annapurna Devi
She was the only female expert of the bass sitar in the classical music genre in India. She was born in the year 1926. She has never take up classical music as her profession but has earned ample of respect from everybody. She took music lessons from her father, Ustad Alauddin Khan and later she also influenced and trained many people. She is the most famous classical musician internationally who has got love recognition across the world
7. Bhimsen Joshi
This living legend was born in the year 1922. He was an Indian vocalist in the Hindustani classical style. He started music at a very young age and gave his first public performance at the age of 19. He became famous among the music lovers with its ability to entertain the audience with some awesome music. he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship by Sangeet Natak Akademi in the year 1998 and Bharat Ratna in the year 2008.
6. Ananda Shankar
He was a famous musician of India. He was born in the year 1942. He was the nephew of the world famous sitarist, Ravi Shankar. He was best known for fusing western and eastern musical styles and has gained worldwide recognition due to its heart winning performance.
5. Shiv Kumar Sharma
He was born in the year 1938. He is known as the famous santoor player. He started his career by taking training from his father Pandit Uma Dutt Sharma. Later he himself introduced many new techniques in playing santoor. He was also the recipient of Padmashree and Padma Vibhushan awards in the year 2001.
4. A.R Rehman
He is one of the famous musicians in India. He was born in the year 1967 in Chennai. He is one of the top 25 all-time top selling recording from India. He is an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, musician, multi-instrumentalist and philanthropis. He has a huge fan following all over the world and his fans refer to him as the Mozart of Madras. Rehman was the recipient of the Mauritius National Award and the Malaysian Award in the year 1995.He was also awarded with Padma Bhushan in the year 2010. This great musician was also the recipient of many more awards.
3. Pandit Ravi Shankar
This famous sitar player was born in the year 1920 and considered as one among top musicians in India. He is famous for the Hindustani Classical Music. This famous musician has also worked as a composer, created Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Ray. He became popular from the year 1960 through teaching and performances in many countries. Pandit Ravi Shankar was also awarded with Bharat Ratna in the year 1999 and this musician ended its journey in the year 2012.
2. Ustad Bismillah Khan
Ustad Bismillah Khan, one of India’s most famous Shehnai Player was born in the year 1913. This famous classical musician have performed across the globe and has a huge fan following. He was also awarded with the top four civilian award namely Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan along with the Bharat Ratna. He is considered as a gem of India.
1. Zakhir Husain
This famous classical Tabla Player was born in the year 1951. He is known for many awards and has won the hearts of the people through its beats, rhythm and exciting performances. He was awarded with Padma Shri in the year1988 and Padma Bhushan in 2002. The list of his awards also includes Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, given by India’s National academy of Music, Dance and Drama which he received in 1990. This famous musician was also awarded with many more awards and is said to be one of the legend of fusion music.