The Indian cultural association, Sanskriti, has announced that the Gundecha Brothers, India’s leading exponent of one of the most ancient styles of Hindustani classical music, dhrupad, will be performing in Seychelles next week.

The group, which is made up of three brothers – Umakant, Ramakant and Akhilesh Gundecha – will stage a show at the International Conference Centre on Monday starting at 7.00 p.m. Admission is free of charge.

The three are among the most active young performers of dhrupad in India and internationally, and they are reputed for having brought this style of music to the forefront on the concert platform. The dhrupad tradition is considered a major heritage of Indian culture.

Initiated into music by their parents Umakant and Ramakant received conventional university education and learned the dhrupad vocal art under the renowned vocalist Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar and also with Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar (the distinguished performer of Rudra Veena) in Dhrupad Kendra Bhopal. Akhilesh has learned Pakhawaj playing from Pandit Shrikant Mishra and Raja Chhatrapati Singh JuDeo. He post graduated in music, graduated in Law and has accompanied many of the dhrupad Maestros like Ustad Z.F. Dagar, Ustad Fahimuddin Dagar, Pt. Siyaram Tiwari, Shrimati Asgari Bai, Dr. Ritwik Sanyal and Bahauddin Dagar. He has also toured Germany, Switzerland, Hong Kong, USA and Canada and is regularly featured on radio and television.

The Gundecha Brothers have sung great Hindi poetry by Tulsidas, Kabir, Padmakar, Nirala in dhrupad style and have also composed music for several documentaries. They have recorded several cassettes and CDs by H.M.V, Music Today, Rhythm House, IPPNW Concerts Berlin, Navras and Audio Rec London. They have also sung for many television channels in India and have been broadcasted on British, U.S., German and French radio as well. As well as being an integral part of all of India's prestigious music festivals, the trio has also performed at many important international music festivals and institutions in Europe, U.S.A, Australia, Singapore, Bangladesh, U.A.E and Hong Kong.

The nature of dhrupad music is spiritual, seeking not to entertain, but to induce feelings of peace and contemplation in the listener. The word dhrupad is derived from dhruva the steadfast evening star that moves through our galaxy and pada meaning poetry. It is a form of devotional music that traces its origin to the ancient text of Sam Veda. The sam veda was chanted with the help of melody and rhythm called samgana. Gradually this developed into other vocal style called 'chhanda' and 'prabandha' with introduction of verse and meter. The fusion of these two elements led to the emergence of dhrupad.

By the 11th Century, dhrupad music had crystallised into a perfect form which has retained its original structure and purity through to the present day. One significant characteristic of dhrupad is the emphasis on maintaining purity of the Ragas and the Swaras. According to some accounts, dhrupad was sung in the temples, the singer facing the divinity. From this early chanting, dhrupad evolved into a sophisticated classical form of music.

The language of dhrupad changed from Sanskrit Brij Bhasha some time between the 12th and the 16th century. About six centuries ago, dhrupad came to be patronised by the royal courts andwas intended for highly sophisticated royal audience. The compositions became more secular. Some were written in praise of the emperors, while others elaborated on music itself. However the pristine nature of dhrupad survived and even today we hear this majestic form of music performed like it was more that 500 years ago in the royal courts of the emperors and kings of India.

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