Biography and Musical Lineage

Born 1964 to a nationally respected family of musicians, Gourisankar began studying and playing tabla at the young age of three years old under the able guidance of his father, Pdt. Shib Shankar Karmakar – a noted disciple of the tabla maestro, the late Ustad Keramatulla Khan. In conjunction with his studies, Gourisankar pursued the art and technique of tabla seriously and soon developed superb control over the instrument. Since 1979, he has been under the tutelage of the Tabla Maestro Pandit Sankha Chatterjee, who is the only living Maestro who has studied with three legendary tabla Maestros in strict Parampara tradition. These legendary Masters are: Ustad Maseet Khan, Ustad Keramatullah Khan, and Ustad Allarakha Khan.

Background

Gourisankar a leading tabla Maestro of the present generation. He is an A grade artist of All India Radio and Television. He has toured internationally for the last 30 years and has performed with numerous eminent musicians. In 2008 he established the School of Indian Percussion and Music in Austin, Texas. His playing styles reflect a unique combination of the Farukhabad, Punjab and Delhi schools of tabla playing. He has accompanied eminent artists such as Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Birju Maharaj, Pandit Jasraj, Pdt V.G. Jog, Pdt A.T. Kannan, Lakshmi Shankar, Ustad Shahid Parvez, Ustad Shujat Khan, Pdt Buddhaditya Mukherjee, Ustad Aasish Khan, Pdt. Tejendra Narayan Mazumdar, Pdt. Ronu Majumdar, Rahul Sharma, Rakesh Chaurasia, Ustad Nishat Khan, Pdt. Debashish Bhattacharya and many more.

Where words fail, music speaks

School of Indian Percussion and Music

School of Indian Percussion and Music

World Music Unleashed by Upaj

World Music Unleashed by Upaj

Bangalore School of Indian Music and Dance

Bangalore School of Indian Music & Dance

My Story

Gourisankar has performed in many occasions with legendary Carnatic musicians like Dr. Mysore Manjunath, Lalgudi Krishnan, Shashank Subramanyam (flautist), Trichy Sankaran, Raja Rao, Patri Satish Kumar, Mahesh Bhupati and more.

Gourisankar has also collaborated with various world famous musicians in the World Music genre, like the legendary drummer Steve Smith, steelpan player Liam Teague, Grammy winner kora player Mamadou Diabate, Hammond organ player Tony Monaco, doyra player Abbos Kosimov and so on. He also has his very own signature production World Music Unleashed, where he invites world renowned musicians to play with him and his band every year.

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Memories That Never Fades

Some glimpses of my performance with Dr. Mysore Manjunath, Lalgudi Krishnan, Shashank Subramanyam (flautist), Trichy Sankaran, Raja Rao, Patri Satish Kumar, Mahesh Bhupati and more.

Melodious Albums

1. Tabla Solo By GOURISANKAR (Audio CD) Sarangi: Ramlal Mishra

2. Rhythmic Tales, Tabla solo by Pandit Gourisankar Tal - Makea - 13 beats, Dhamar-14 beats, Teental-16 beats (Video Album)

3. ‘Melody of Rhythm’ by Gourisankar (AUDIO CD), 2011

4. Strings Tradition (Mamadou Diabate- Kora,Ustad Shujaat Khan- Sitar, Lalgudi GJR Krishnan- Violin, Gourisankar- Tabla, Murali Trichy- Ghatam) FELMAY Records Italy (Audio CD)

5. Ecstasy of Tabla by Gourisankar, Sarangi :Pdt. Ramesh Misra

6. GLOBAL HARMONY By ATASH (World Music Audio CD)

7. SUR BIHAR By Indrajit Banerjee – Sitar, Gourisankar – Tabla (Audio CD)

8. A SITAR RECITAL By Indrajit Banerjee – Sitar, Tabla – Gourisankar (Audio CD) Recorded in Boston, USA.

9. Tribute to Miyan Tansen On Viola Indradeep Ghosh and Pandit Gourisankar on Tabla

10. Mantra Magic by Russil Paul (Vocal) & Gourisankar (Tabla)

My Musical Journey

Gourisankar has also collaborated with various world famous musicians in the World Music genre, like the legendary drummer Steve Smith, steelpan player Liam Teague, Grammy winner kora player Mamadou Diabate, Hammond organ player Tony Monaco, doyra player Abbos Kosimov and so on.