USTAD BISMILLAH KHAN

March 21, 1916 – Dumraon, Bihar, India.

August 21, 2006

Indian Musician (Shehnai Maestro)

• The unparallelled maestro of the Indian Classical Aerophonic Music.
• Shehnai was since long being used as a folk instrument played primarily during traditional ceremonies.
• Bismillah Khan elevated its status and brought it to the concert stage.
• At the age of six, he moved to Varanasi and received his training under his uncle, the late Ali Baksh 'Vilayatu', a shehnai player attached to Varanasi's Vishwanath Temple.
• Though a pious Shi'ite Muslim, he was also a devotee of Saraswati, the Hindu Goddess of wisdom and arts.
• He, like his uncle and Guru, often played shehnai at Hindu temples, including the famous Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, on the banks of the river Ganga.
• He is one of the finest musicians in post-independent Indian classical music and one of the best examples of Hindu-Muslim unity in India.
• He played shehnai to audience across the world.
• 2006:   Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puruskar:   It was instituted in memory ofUstad Bismillah Khan, this award is given to young artists (below 35 years of age) for their talent in the fields of music, dance and drama.

• Bharat Ratna in 2001.
• So he became the third classical musician after M. S. Subbulakshmi and Ravi Shankar to be honoured with this distinction.
• Besides this, he won many other awards like: Fellow of Sangeet Natak Akademi (1994).Talar Mausiquee from Republic of Iran (1992). Padma Vibhushan (1980) Padma Bhushan (1968) Padma Shri (1961) Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1956) Tansen Award by Govt. of Madhya Pradesh. Three medals in All India Music Conference, Calcutta (1937) "Best Performer" in All India Music Conference, Allahabad (1930).