Sawai Gandharva Music Festival
| Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Dates | Traditionally the second weekend of December |
| Location(s) | New English School Ramanbaug, Pune, Maharashtra, India |
| Years active | 1953 – present |
| Founded by |
Bhimsen Joshi, Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal |
| Website | |
| sawaigandharvabhimsenmahotsav |
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The Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav (formerly known as the Sawai Gandharva Sangeet Mahotsav and simply known as Sawai) is an annual Indian Classical music festival held in Pune since 1953. The festival is hosted by the Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal (ASPM) and initiated by Bhimsen Joshi as a memorial music conference commemorating the life and work of Joshi's guru, Sawai Gandharva, the festival's namesake.
While Joshi was leading the organisation of the festival, performing artists received personal invitations from him to perform at it. With an emphasis on Hindustani Classical Khayal music, instrumentalists, dancers, dhrupadiyas, Bhakti musicians, Ghazal musicians, Qawwaliyas, and Carnatic musicians frequent the concert lineup.
A younger artist's debut performance at the festival connotes their "arrival" and promise to the Classical music scene of India (most recently including Rahul Deshpande, Kaushiki Chakrabarty, and Mahesh Kale).
Since its inception, the festival has grown into a prominent cultural soiree for Pune's musical connoisseurs, featuring the foremost musicians of traditional Indian musical forms.
The festival was started in 1953 on a small scale, to commemorate the first death anniversary of Sawai Gandharva, the acclaimed Hindustani Classical vocalist of the Kirana Gharana.
Bhimsen Joshi led the organisation of the festival from its beginning until 2002 when his health problems became of concern. Joshi's youngest son, Shrinivas Joshi, and senior disciple, Shrikant Deshpande, succeeded him as organisers. Since Joshi's death in 2011, Shrinivas Joshi and Anand Deshmukh have been the main organisers.
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Wikipedia