Tansen

Mian Tansen (Tan Sen, Ramtanu)
Tansen of Gwalior, a Mughal painting (1585-90)
Background information
Birth name	Ramtanu
Born	c. 1493 Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh
Died	1586 Agra
Genres	Hindustani Classical Music
Occupation(s)	musician, instrumentalist, vocalist, music studies
Years active	Till 1562: Raja Ram Chand,Rewa After 1562: Emperor Akbar

Tansen (c. 1500 – 1586), also referred to as Tan Sen or Mian Tansen, was a prominent figure of North Indian (Hindustani) classical music. Born in a Hindu family, he learnt and perfected his art in the northwest region of modern Madhya Pradesh. He began his career and spent most of his adult life in the court and patronage of the Hindu king of Rewa State, Ram Chand, where Tansen's musical abilities and studies gained widespread fame. This reputation brought him to the attention of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, who sent messengers to Ram Chand requesting Tansen to join the musicians at the Mughal court. Tansen did not want to go, Ram Chand encouraged him to gain wider audience, and sent him along with gifts to Akbar. In 1562, about the age of 60, the Vaishnava musician Tansen joined the Akbar court, and his performances became a subject of many court historians.

Numerous legends have been written about Tansen, mixing facts and fiction, and the historicity of these stories is doubtful. Akbar considered him as a Navaratnas (nine jewels), and gave him the title Mian, an honorific, meaning learned man.

Tansen was a composer, musician and vocalist, to whom a large number of compositions have been attributed in northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. He was also an instrumentalist who popularised and improved musical instruments. He is among the most influential personalities in North Indian tradition of Indian classical music, called Hindustani. His 16th century studies in music and compositions inspired many, and he is considered by numerous North Indian gharana (regional music schools) as their lineage founder.

Tansen is remembered for his epic Dhrupad compositions, creating several new ragas, as well as for writing two classic books on music Sri Ganesh Stotra and Sangita Sara.

Tansen's date and place of birth is unclear, but most sources place his birth about 1500 CE, or between 1493 to 1506. His biography is also unclear and many conflicting accounts exist, with some common elements. Historical facts about Tansen are difficult to extract from the extensive and contradictory legends that surround him.

According to the common elements in the various stories, Tansen's name as a child was Ramtanu. His father Mukund Pandey (also known as Makrand Pandey, Mukund Mishra, or Mukund Ram) was a wealthy poet and accomplished musician, who for some time was a Hindu temple priest in Varanasi.