Gopal Shankar Misra

Gopal Shankar Misra (born 1957 in Kanpur, died 13 August 1999 in Bhopal) was an Indian musician and music teacher, who played the vichitra veena.

Misra's father, Lalmani Misra, was born in the 1920s and became a singer and instrumentalist who performed dhrupad and khyal, and played the tabla, the sitar, and revived the vichitra veena by creating playing-technique for it. In his early years he had toured the globe as music-director to dance troupe of Pt. Uday Shankar. Dr. Lalmani Misra was a performing musician and an academic, who served as Dean of the Faculty of Performing Arts at Banaras Hindu University, where he worked as a teacher and administrator, until his death in 1979.

This left the 22-year-old Gopal a challenge of work unfinished. The family eventually attained Gharana status when the third generation – Gopal and Padmaja's son and daughter, Gandharva and Shruti – began to excel at the veena. It was much later on that the Uday Shankar connection was to resurface a generation later, when Gopal was invited to join the 1998 UK touring and Real World recording project made by State of Bengal and Ananda Shankar, Uday Shankar's son.

Gopal was born in Kanpur, India in 1957. His sister, Ragini, was born some years later. His mother was Padma. Surrounded by and growing up with music, his interest deepened following an international tour with his father. He had studied vocal music and sitar since the age of four and was interested in cricket and other sports.

At the age of 15 his interest in music turned serious. His father introduced his son in 1975 at Varanasi. Chhotelal Mishra disciple of Pandit Anokhelal Mishra, accompanied Gopal who performed a rendering of Marwa, Chandrakauns and Pahadi on sitar.

Gopal's mother died of cancer on 5 April 1977. His father, Lalmani Misra, took the children around the country, performing and meeting academics and musicians. As a visiting Professor at Penn University, Misra had to leave for a semester (January to June 1978). He recorded ample music lessons for Gopal and Ragini so that both excelled in their respective examinations. On his return, he developed an ache in his back and had to rely more on his children. Gopal and Ragini thereby received training in academics of music, which served them much later on.

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