Ravi Shankar (born April 7, 1920 in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India) is an Indian musician best known for his virtuosity on the sitar. A disciple of Allauddin Khan (founder of the maihar gharana of hindustani classical music), Pandit Ravi Shankar is arguably the best-known Indian instrumentalist, and is well known for his pioneering work in bringing the power and appeal of the indian classical music tradition, as well as indian popular music and its performers in general, to the West. This was done through his association with The Beatles as well as with his own personal charisma. His musical career spans over six decades and Shankar currently holds the Guinness Record for the longest international career. ...show more

Ravi Shankar (born April 7, 1920 in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India) is an Indian musician best known for his virtuosity on the sitar. A disciple of Allauddin Khan (founder of the maihar gharana of hindustani classical music), Pandit Ravi Shankar is arguably the best-known Indian instrumentalist, and is well known for his pioneering work in bringing the power and appeal of the indian classical music tradition, as well as indian popular music and its performers in general, to the West. This was done through his association with The Beatles as well as with his own personal charisma. His musical career spans over six decades and Shankar currently holds the Guinness Record for the longest international career.

He is the father of both Grammy award winning singer Norah Jones, and Anoushka Shankar, also a noted sitarist. Born on April 7, 1920, in Varanasi into an orthodox, well-off Brahmin family, Rabindra Shankar Chowdery's father, ShyÆm Shankar, was employed as a diwan (minister) by the Maharajah of Jhalawar. By the age of 13, Ravi Shankar was going along on every tour of his brother Uday Shankar's Compaigne de Danse et Musique Hindou (Company of Hindu Dance and Music). At the All-Bengali Music Conference in December 1934, he met the multi-instrumentalist Allauddin Khan.

Precisely when Allauddin Khan was born is uncertain. People hazard dates in the 1860s around 1862, but in later years he himself gave his age haphazardly. He would transform many musicians' lives, but he had an incalculable effect on Ali Akbar (his son), Annapurna Devi (his daughter), and Shankar himself. Allauddin Khan joined Uday's troupe as its principal soloist around 1935-1936. ...show less