Partho Sarathy is one of the finest young musicians of India, and his rendition on the Sarode is truly a symphony in serenity, embodying the true heritage of Hindustani Raagdari music. His virtuosity on the Sarod makes his exploration of Raagas an exercise in Harmony, Tranquility and his serious meditative approach makes his music literally soar to unscaled height of fulfillment. Starting under his father who was a disciple of Pandit Radhika Mohan Maitra, Partho next learnt from Ustad Dhyanesh Khan, son and disciple of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. And since 1980, he has been the Shishya of Pandit Ravi Shankar. Partho Sarathy has performed at major music festivals all over the world. Partho Sarathy was born in 1960 in Calcutta (Bengal) in a family of khyal musicians. At the age of 16 he won the national competition for instrumental music of the All India Radio; this important award allowed him to become a student of the famous Ravi Shankar when he was 18 years old. Still a student of this incredible master, he has toured and played intensively with him in India, Europe, and the USA. Partho Sarathy plays in a very personal style sustained by great inspiration. He has also developed his very own fingering, which gives his sound a remarkable signature. With this long and very illustrious training under these great gurus coupled with an inherent creative sensibility, Partho Sarathy's music is truly a symphony in serenity. Partho is based on Calcutta, the cultural Mecca of India. He has been performing for the last 30 years in India and all over the world. He regularly performs in Europe and the U.S.A every year. In India, he has given concerts at all the major music festivals like Dover Lane in Calcutta, the Savai Gandharva festival in Pune, Music academy festival in Chennai, Royal Albert hall in London, Kremlin in Moscow and numerous other places in India and abroad. Some reviews: ".... melodic excellence and total quality......" TheTimes of India,Ahamedabad "One of India's most promising sarod players".......Kuensel,Germany ".....one of the most outstanding sarod players of his generation." Asia Daily "....depth of the raga was complemented by his mellifluous touch." The Statesman, New Delhi ".....his unhurried delineation and the sweet touches elicited repeated applause." The Times of India, Ahamedabad "....brilliant young artist....." The Hindu, Chennai "....fine tapestries of note combinations and the unhurried manner in which he handled the raga revealed his grip over the classical style." The Statesman, New Delhi "....immence musical depth and charm." The Indian Express, Ahamedabad "....nothing short of brilliant." The Times of India, Calcutta The Mahir Gharana The Maihar gharana has its roots in the Rampur branch of the Senia gharana, which can boast of having the last descendants of Mian Tansen as Gurus. Wazir Khan, the Veenkar descendant of Mian Tansen from the daughters' side taught Ustad Allauddin Khan. The teaching was done in two parts. The first part was like a normal 'Ganda bandha' , Shagird. The second part was done as if to a son, more intensively. This was done after the death of Ustad Wazir Khna's son. Md. Dabir Khan, the grandson was too young and younger son Md. Sagir Khan was too westernized and lacked the ability to work hard in the "guru - shishya paramparay" tradition. Ustad Allauddin Khan was called by his Ustad for the second time and in Baba's words was taught in one year what one normally learns in 12 years. Since this was done on a base created earlier and since Ustad Allauddin Khan was known for his rigorous riyaz, this was easy. Enriched with the complete talim of the authentic Rampur Senia gharana, Baba Allauddin could now afford to be creative taking note of what he had learnt in his young struggling days in Calcutta from Nulo Gopal, the Dhrupadiya, Habu Datta, the music director and Mr. Lobo, the violinist. The amalgam plus the personal genius of Baba led to some brilliant compositions. The translation of his musical thoughts and imagination to practical music was done through three of his brilliant students - Ali Akbar Khan, Ravi Shankar and Smt. Annapurna Devi. Since all this was done in Maihar his students prefer to call it the Maihar gharana. (Source: http://www.eternallyarts.com/parthosarathy_bio.html )