Hear or download song clips by Arya Cahaudhuri by clicking the link below.
1) A Bhatyali song - 'Koi Jao re' by Arya Chaudhri.
http://www.box.net/shared/un6f5gd3ap
2) A Choot (Pancharas) - 'Ote Jabed Alir Ma' by Arya Chaudhri.
http://www.box.net/shared/khix54p06g
3) A Bengali Marriage Song (First Night/Fulsajya) - 'Kajla Bichhaana' by Arya Chaudhri.
http://www.box.net/shared/03xprktf5n
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Happy listening! :)
Monday, February 15, 2010
Dr. Dibyajyoti Mazumdar – speaks about Arya Chaudhuri
Dr. Dibyajyoti Mazumdar, an erudite personality, former editor of “Paschimbanga” (official journal of Govt. of West Bengal), former visiting professor of journalism, Calcutta University and author of several research oriented books on folklore – speaks about Arya Chaudhuri:
Arya Chaudhuri, our Arya - as I call him - is officially known as Somesh Charan Chaudhuri, having a brilliant academic background in folk music, self-dedicated, renowned and widely acclaimed folk singer with a masculine and rustic melodious voice is a distinguished name in the Indian cultural world. He hails from an enlightened cultural family of Malda district in West Bengal, India, which helped him to acquire a rich treasure of multifarious types of field-based folk songs of around one hundred thousand since 1956, not only of rural Bengal but also of the cross border areas of Assam – Bengal – Jharkhand – Bihar and different places of Bangladesh.
He remains an evergreen folk singer even after so many years with a unique style of his own. He learnt folk songs from the different local folk singers, picking up their phonetic expression of regional pronunciation of dialects along with its timbre and rustic style. This highly acclaimed artiste is well known for his fascinating voice and inimitable captivating performance of traditional indigenous songs. I take the privilege to mention some relevant anecdotes of Arya Chaudhuri, which are as follows:
His research work was on “Determination and preservation of thematic regional tunes and dialects of the traditional Bengali volkslieds and its essential evolutive elements of folk- urban continuum” – a pruned excerpt of the comment on the thesis by the eminent scholar Professor Richard M. Dorson, Head of the Department of Indology, Indiana University, USA – “A posteriori and authentic work on in-depth field study of Dr. S.C. Chaudhuri, a true esprit fort, on the principle of nota bene having propinquity on reasons and ideas Ad rem, which ought to go a long way to enrich and propitiate the future generation of scholars”.
He is the son of an illustrious father – late Professor Tariny Charan Chaudhuri, M.A. (Triple), Ph.D., A.I.C. (London) and loving erudite mother late Probhabati Malati Chaudhuri of Dhubri, Assam.
He is promoting the indigenous traditional field based folk songs in its ethnic genre of socio-cultural transformation on stage performance and electronic media for the last twenty years.
His distinguishing achievement as folk singer:
a) He stood first in the International Artistic Contest of Folk Songs during the Xth World Youth and Students Festival held in Berlin (East Germany). He won the Gold Medal defeating 1180 competitors on the world platform in 1973 and happens to be the last recipient of such honour for India, as of 2010.
(In the picture on the right Arya Chaudhuri - the young man in the middle sitting along with other members of the Indian Team - is received by Late Hon'ble Mrs. Indira Gandhi - the then Prime Minister of India. Padmasree Debdulal Bandyopadhyay is next to him (the man in specs, looking away from the picture)
b) He is the recipient of Lokakristi Swarna Smarak – as a mark of life time achievement given jointly by “Uttarbanga Lokakristi Samsad” – Coachbehar; “Loukik – Kolkata” and Calcutta Press Club in 2007.
c) He is the author of “Uttarbonger Mati Manusher Gaan” – published by FTCC, Govt. of West Bengal in 2008.
d) He performed, as an invitee folk artiste in public charity shows organised by Matri Sadan and Sishu Mangal Parisad, Dhaka, in aid of victims of natural calamity of Bangladesh in 1992 and handed over his entire remuneration of rupees one lakh as donation to the Bangladesh Government as a mark of humane magnanimity and social responsibility towards Bangladesh.
e) He is an approved Grade ‘A’ Folk singer of All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan (Government TV Network) since 1974. He is also an approved high grade Lyricist, Script Writer and Music Composer of AIR & Doordarshan.
f) He has many EP and LP discs containing his folk songs from HMV (EMI) - the most renowned record Company of India and his folk songs have also been released commercially in cassettes and CDs from different Companies since 1974.
g) He acted as an advisor on the request of AIR, Siliguri, to enrich the Radio Station in respect of folk music and artiste in 1971.
Some Honours and Felicitations:
a) Sanghati Puroskar, Chandigarh in 1982.
b) Michael Madhusudan Award, West Bengal in 1985.
c) 66th Nikhil Bharat Bango Sahitya Sammelon Honour, Bangalore in 1993.
d) Loko Protibha Samman by Tripura Folk Academy (TFA) and Department of Culture, Govt. of Tripura, Agartala in 1999.
e) Kanailal Seal Smriti Smarak Samman by TFA and EZCC, Agartala in 2000.
f) Tripura Loko Utsav Samman, Agartala in 2000..
g) Asiatic Society Honour, Kolkata in 2007.
h) Gurusaday Dutta 125th Birthday Honour by Gurusaday Museum, Kolkata in 2008.
Participation as a Folk singer/speaker in Govt. & Non. Govt. Seminars:
a) Lok-Sangeet Alochona Chakra, Govt. of West Bengal in 1974
b) Purba Bharat Sanskriti Sammelon, Govt. of West Bengal in 1975
c) Bango Sanskriti Sammelon, Kolkata in 1982
e) Prabashi Bango Sanskriti Sammelon, Delhi in 1974
f) All India Folk-Festival, Kolkata in 1981
g) All India Folklore Congress Association, Kolkata in 2003
h) Lecture demonstration at Asiatic Society's National Seminar on: Performing Arts of North-East and North Bengal at the Vidyasagar Hall, Kolkata on 30th & 31st March 2007.
Contribution on Electronic Media:
a) Produced Jelar Loko-Gaan for the first time ever in A.I.R., Kolkata during 1975-76.
b) Introduced the regional names of the particular types of folk songs of Bengal for broadcast in All India Radio, Kolkata in 1976 for the first time ever, e.g. Jumur (Tamaria, Nachni, etc), Bhatiali, Bhaoaiya (Daria, Chatka, Khirol, etc).
c) Produced programme at A.I.R on use of traditional folk tunes by Rabindranath Tagore in his own compositions, Kolkata in 1992
d) Performed traditional folk songs in National Network Programme of A.I.R. and Doordarshan, during Asian Games in 1982
e) Produced discussion programme on traditional folk songs of Bengal with demonstration in A.I.R., Kolkata in 1994
f) Composed the signature tune of Santhali Programme of A.I.R, Kolkata and also acted as a member of Santhali Audition Board during 1975-77.
Relevant Information:
a) Brought many unknown rural talents to the limelight, who are now widely renowned., e.g Swapna Charborty, Gostogapal Das, Radha Raman Das, Priti Bag, etc.
b) He is engaged in many social work like blood donation camps, distribution of books and clothing to poor children, etc
Arya Chaudhuri is still engaged in fieldwork for searching out folk talents and also different types of rare traditional folk songs in its original form and old manuscripts, which are on the brink of extinction.
In fine, I take the opportunity to attract the attention of the people of Bengal and Bangladesh, living throughout the world, to present this folk artiste on their cultural arena and promote the ethnic traditional folk songs of Bengal amongst their young generation. Arya, is not only a folk singer but also a very sensitive social worker and spends a lot of his earnings from the performances amongst the poor students and folk singers through his organisation – MADOL – An Insitute of Folk Music Research and Training, since 1974.
Photo: Arya Chaudhuri - in conversation with the then Honb'le Governor of West Bengal, Mr. Gopal Krishna Gandhi, at Rajbhavan in Kolkata on 24th November 2009.
Hear or download a part of a Bhatyali song - 'Koi Jao re' by Arya Chaudhri by clicking or pesting the link below in your browser. Please do put your comment.
Happy listening! :)
ARYA-A PHENOMENON by Professor B.K. Sahu
This article, published in a journal in 1974 on Arya Chaudhuri, was written by eminent scholar Professor B.K. Sahu, former Head of the Department of English, Utah State University, USA, which is still relevant.
Folk-song is the product of blood, conviviality, toil, tears and sweat of the living people who are near the soil. Folk song is one of the most traditional and vital patterns of Indian music which has survived throughout the centuries of 'modern' civilisation and entertained not only the toiling masses in this country but lovers of music and art throughout the world. Thanks and our highest tributes are to those glorious heroes who had represented Indian Folk music before the world-platform with their historic achievements. Among the galaxy of national representatives who have put India on the world map, Mr. Arya Chaudhuri can legitimately claim a pride of place. He played a pivotal role in the International Folk-song contest at Berlin and he was adjudged first and won the gold medal by defeating 1180 competitors from different corners of the globe. It is undoubtedly a pregnant addition to our national prestige and cultural uplift.
He is 'Arya' by name as well as 'Arya' by culture and he is 'Arya' in the dynamic sense as he has combined the best of 'Anarya* with the true genre of 'Arya' culture. As a result, his folk-song can satisfy the musical appetite of the variety of people- both the plebeian and the patriciate. It is 'the brandy of the damned' as well as the champagne of the aristocrat. Mark that Mr. Arya Chaudhuri, the folk-song-wizard of Bengal hypnotized the people of Berlin (i e. Arya blood) who once declared that they are the only Aryan blood to rule over the world!
Mr. Chaudhuri is a realist as well. He is well aware of the fact that folk-song is not relished by the invading aggressive sophisticated modern people. The typically high-brow-people have afforded a very lukewarm reception to folk music as a whole. Yet it is not the cause of his rejection, but the cause of his acceptance. He is a true man of the soil. He is really a patriot. He spares no pains to uphold the magnitude of Folk song - the true essence of it. He vehemently criticises the trend of 'progressive degradation' He has no faith on sick, hurry and divided aims of Westernisation in the name of Indianisation. He abhors such a tendency of slavish mentality. But one thing should be dwelled upon here that he has remoulded, revived, reinvigorated, rejuvenated, enriched and added the various avenues, threads and possibilities of indigenous folk song by his sound education and knowledge of the study of the varieties of International Folk music, Obviously, the product is revolutionary. He is 'an epitome of the world'. His production is with a noble variation, yielding place to new for it has to live as a dynamic force and not merely a fossilised remnant of the past. Aptly says, H, G. Wells, "Tradition is the helper; tradition is the bar." But Mr. Chaudhuri has brilliantly fused Tradition and Individual talent in the arena of Folk song. Thus he is a great artiste in the Eliotean sense.
Naturally, his utmost endeavour has always been to represent the magnificently palatable varieties of folk songs with a new dimension keeping the ethnic and indigenous character intact.
Look at the man and the folk artiste. He is an aristocrat and he is an aristocrat in the Platonic sense, which is to be judged not by purse, but by good nature within him. A fine sense of cultural synthesis finds its fulfilment in the life of this talented young folk artiste.
So I dare believe that Mr. Chaudhuri — a volcano, a flaming sword, Titanic in energy, a capsule of spirit, a man of bull dog's iron tenacity, a man of fine intelligence and sharp reasoning and a man with moral stamina and self-confidence, will lead himself to the most glorious position so as to be reckoned as a significant landmark in the annals of Indian Culture.
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