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Shivkumar Sharma

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Shivkumar Sharma was an Indian classical musician and santoor player. He is regarded as the man who made the santoor suitable for Indian classical music. The santoor is a hammered dulcimer that was originally a folk instrument from Kashmir. Sharma was born in Jammu in 1938. His father, a singer and tabla player, taught him to sing and play tabla at the age of five and later introduced him to the santoor. He began on the instrument at thirteen and gave his first public concert in Mumbai in 1955, playing Raga Yaman for an hour.

Music and breakthrough

He recorded his first solo album in 1960. In 1967 he made the concept album Call of the Valley with the flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia and the guitarist Brij Bhushan Kabra, which became one of the great successes of Indian classical music. In 1968 he gave his first concert abroad, in Los Angeles. With Chaurasia he formed the duo Shiv-Hari, which wrote music for Hindi films such as Silsila, Faasle, Chandni, Lamhe and Darr. He also played tabla on a song from the film Guide. He himself described classical music not as entertainment but as a meditative journey.

Influence

His instrument has a hundred strings, struck with small wooden mallets, and produces long, floating lines and fast runs. Sharma received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1986 and later the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan. From 1996 he played together with his son Rahul. He died in 2022. Thanks to him, the santoor is known worldwide.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Call of the Valley and notice the santoor: the bright, almost glittering tone of the mallets against the softer flute, which together seem to paint a landscape.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists