TIMINGS
SUNDAYS
12:00 – 13:00 L1
14:00 – 15:00 O
15:00 – 16:00 L2
The bansuri or bamboo flute) is an ancient wind instrument made of a single hollow shaft of bamboo with six or seven finger holes. Its name originates from the Sanskrit for wood, (bans) and the word for musical note[s], sur. Essentially a folk instrument, it is now considered a fully-fledged classical instrument in its own right, owing mainly to maestros such as Pannalal Ghosh and Hariprasad Chaurasia. The bansuri is deeply entrenched in the pastoral tradition of the cowherds of North India, most importantly as the instrument of Lord Krishna, a Hindu mythological deity, who is always depicted playing the flute.
ABOUT THE TEACHER GAURAV UNIYAL
Gaurav’s fascination for Bansuri started at an early age, listening to the tune of this simple yet melodious bamboo instrument in the tribal folklores and traditional music of the Garhwal region of Himalayas in Uttarakhand, India, where he grew up.
He is blessed to be a student of Bhavan’s resident Hindustani Vocal Guru Vidushi Chandrima Misra Ji and Tabla Guru Pt. Rajkumar Misra Ji, who have been instrumental in shaping his classical musicality over the past several years of his Bhavan journey. He is currently an advanced student in both the subjects and has completed his Post Diploma in Hindustani Vocal with distinction from The Bhavan.
His introduction to classical playing in Bansuri began under Pt. Mrityunjoy Mukherjee Ji in IIT Kharagpur, West Bengal, where he completed his graduation.
After completing his graduation he moved to Mumbai for his job, where he was fortunate enough to learn for five years at Padma Vibhushan Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia Ji’s Vrindaban Gurukul in Juhu.
Gaurav moved to London and continued his bansuri learning from Shri Clive Bell Ji at The Bhavan for a few years.
His flute playing is influenced by Shri Ashwin Srinivasan Ji’s unique gayaki style and he learns from him whenever he gets a chance to meet him in person.
Gaurav is an Architect and Senior Façade Consultant at ARUP, he has collaborated with architects such as Foster+Partners, ZahaHadid, FCBS etc. and has palyed a key role in complex façade design of some of the prestigious projects in UK and abroad, including Heathrow Airport, Manchester Airport, University of Portsmouth, National Bank of Kazakhstan, Statue of Unity, India, Lodha Altamount Mumbai, Sports Boulevard, Riyadh etc. His current role is focussed on Façade & Fire aspect of the buildings (especially after Grenfell tragedy) and Decarbonisation of existing buildings to achieve net zero target and SDGs of United Nations.