New Delhi: Santoor maestro Bhajan Sopori, sometimes called the ‘saint of santoor’ and ‘king of strings’ for his mastery over the instrument, died on Thursday at a Gurugram hospital following a battle with most cancers. He was 73. Sopori is survived by his spouse and two sons Sorabh and Abhay, who additionally performs the santoor.
Sopori’s dying comes simply weeks after santoor virtuoso Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, who additionally belonged to Kashmir and took the stringed instrument to the classical music stage, died on May 10. And on Saturday, playback singer KK handed away on Saturday in Kolkata following a cardiac arrest.
Sopori acquired a number of awards by his profession, together with the Padma Shri in 2004, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1992 and the Jammu and Kashmir State Lifetime Achievement Award. The musician-composer belonged to north Kashmir’s Sopore district and got here from the ‘Sufiana Gharana’.
Sopori, who gave his first public efficiency on the age of 10, was initiated into the intricacies of santoor enjoying by his grandfather Pandit Samsar Chand Sopori and later by his father Pandit Shamboo Nath Sopori. The musician is taken into account a pioneer in establishing the santoor on nationwide and worldwide platforms as a whole solo instrument. He can be credited with innovating the instrument to enhance its tonal high quality and vary.
