Such to blessing to watch these legends Aadarniya Pandit Gokhale Guruji and Aadarniya Gaitonde Guruji...Sangeetveda, thank you for sharing this informative video.
Only 3741 views for this hidden gem. Only so many people interested in Thirakwa's legacy. Only so many people to appreciate the unimaginable sweetness of this inimitable artist. Truly today is the age of speed and gimmickry. The incredible art of this man stays largely unknown and unrealised and will probably be buried like this. One had to listen to Bhimsen Joshi's renderings to savour a bit of what a percussion accompaniment should be. Pandit LG is subtle to the point where actually it seems sometimes that there is no tabla in the background - he blends so as if the vocalist and the percussion player have become one. The initiated will know what I mean. And Walawalkar's harmonium lifts the rendering to a different level. AIR programmes were such a pleasure to listen to. Pranam to Pandit Lalji Gokhale
Well said, Shuvam ji. As a leading musicologist in the 1970s said: our music is on the way to becoming loud, fast and furious.... prescient words. Pt. Lalji Gokhale, who I had the privilege to know for over a decade (though not as a student of music) introduced us to the fact that music (including tabla) should be "spasht, surel and shaandar" at all times. Lalji's relationship with Thirakwa Khansaab was very special, from the time of his 'gandabandhan' in 1929 (at the age of about 9 years) to Khansaab. It should be recalled that Lalji's given name was Madhusudan Raghunath Gokhale. It was Khansaab who endearingly called his earnest and fiercely determined pupil; 'Lala'. In time, Lala grew in age and stature as a musician into Lalaji, which morphed into Lalji. The Ustad did not just give his favourite Shagird; knowledge...but also a name! You have mentioned Lalji's accompaniment of Bhimsen ji (among a constellation of great musicians) but there was a particularly special 'saath-sangat' relationship with another musician. It was with Pt.Kumar Gandharva. That began at the time that Kumarji was under the tutelage of Dr.B.R.Deodhar as a young boy. Lalji was older than Kumarji by about 2 years. There is a well known film clip of Kumarji from Wadia Movietone as a boy. The (off-camera) accompanist in that was Lalji. That friendship between them endured through their lifetimes, though later (after Kumarji's sojourn in Dewas) Pt.Vasant Achrekar frequently accompanied Kumarji. However, Kumarji's last appearance at the Sawai Gandharva Music festival in Pune had the two childhood friends together again in a memorable concert. There are so many anecdotes about Pt.Lalji Gokhale that are worth sharing. A musician whose mind and his music was always straight and yet sensitively creative, bereft of any gimmickry. Incidentally, this year is the Birth Centenary Year of Pt.Lalji Gokhale. A musician of a different era.
@@spandana_music many thanks for enlightening us with the additional inputs with regards to Pandit Lalji and Kumarji. Are there any recordings of the two greats available in the public domain ? Please continue to share your thoughts and ideas with us. Thank you once again.
@@spandana_music thanks for sharing :) we are lucky to get closer to his legacy. I wonder if some recordings of Thirakwa khan sahib I have heard him call out Lalji's name before playing something special? not sure...but it's so great to know of the closeness of these masters
Sitting in the middle is also a great tabla maestro Ustad Bhai Suresh Gaitonde. He is my tabla Guru. There is no match of his percussion. Bravo for both these Ustads.
