Abhay Sopori


Maestro Abhay Rustum Sopori is an Indian Santoor player, music composer and conductor. He is the son of Santoor virtuoso and composer Pandit Bhajan Sopori. Known for his versatility, innovations and experimentation, Abhay is the youngest classical musician to compose and conduct orchestras, choral presentations, Sufi and folk music ensembles, and has also been the youngest recipient of almost all the awards that he has received in recognition of his outstanding contribution and achievements in the field of music.
Abhay was the first Indian Classical musician to be invited at the prestigious International conference TEDx.

Life and career

Early life and family

Abhay Rustum Sopori was born on 7 June 1979 in the Kashmir valley of Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. His parents were musician Bhajan Sopori and Aparna Sopori, a professor of English literature. He learned Santoor under the traditional Guru-Shishya Parampara of his mystic Shaivite - Sufi tradition from his grandfather Shamboo Nath Sopori, hailed as the "Father of Classical Music" in Jammu and Kashmir and his father Bhajan Sopori.
Abhay represents the Sufiana Gharana of Kashmir, the exclusive traditional Santoor family of India with its roots spanning over nine generations over more than 300 years.
Sopori has a bachelor's and master's degree in Music from Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh, India and holds bachelors in Commerce from Delhi University and Computers from Indira Gandhi National Open University.

Career

Sopori was trained in Indian classical music from his childhood, as well as Western and Sufiana music. Apart from santoor, he also learned vocal, Indian classical sitar, Sufiana sitar and piano. He recorded his first song at the age of 3 for a musical feature for All India Radio composed by his father and was also part of his father's grand choral presentation featuring over 8000 voices in Srinagar Kashmir in 1985.
He presented his first Choral presentation featuring over 100 singers in October 2005 in Kashmir organised by Sopori Academy of Music And Performing Arts. Abhay's J&K Folk Music Ensembles has also been presented at various other festivals and conferences, which includethe 'Jammu & KashmirFestival' presented at the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts in New Delhi in 2009 and Ganesh Kala KridaRangmanch in Pune in 2010, which left the audiences captivated and mesmerized. Abhay's Classical fusions have also received rave reviews.
In 2000, Abhay started his musical work in Kashmir performing for the youth across the Valley promoting Indian classical music and culture and is credited for changed the entire cultural scenario of Jammu & Kashmir bringing the youth together through music. His concerts in border areas of J&K have been attended by over 20,000 people.
Since his debut as a Classical Santoor player in mid 1990s, Abhay has performed in prestigious festivals across India and around the world in countries like the United States, Russia, Brazil, Mauritius, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Germany, France, Italy, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Slovenia, Ukraine, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Morocco, Iran, Israel, Bahrain, Dubai, etc.
Sopori introduced the concept of 'Sufi Music Ensemble' titled 'Sufi Kinship®’ in 2011 featuring 35 musicians and Santoor led an Indian Classical Music Ensemble in 2014 featuring 25 musicians and performed at various concerts across India.
He scored the music for the fusion composition titled Haftrang in 2013 performed by the Bavarian State Orchestra of Germany, together with his Kashmiri folk music ensemble Soz-o-Saaz, giving international recognition to Kashmiri music. The concert was telecast live in more than 100 countries. The orchestra consisted of around 100 musicians.
Sopori has also done international collaborations including presentations with the Austrian Vienna Boys Choir, Moroccan Lutist Haj Younis, Iranian santoor player Darius Saghafi, American dulcimer player Malcom Dalgish, French clarinetist Laurent Clouet & others.
He has held various cultural positions like:

Style of Santoor

Sopori's Classical Santoor performance is marked by mellifluous playing, lightning tempo, clarity and accuracy of Indian Classical Raga exposition and adoption of the Sopori Baaj , the unique and systematic format of Santoor playing created by his father.
Presentation of Dhrupad system along with the accompaniment of the Pakhawaj is also a special characteristic of his Sopori Baaj and performance. He sings the compositions along with its instrumental rendering reviving his traditional Shaivaite - Sufi Santoor Parampara.

Innovations & creations

Sopori continues to innovate and experiment with Santoor to further extend its dimensions. He has introduced the Open String Concept, together with the Enhanced Sustain Technique, giving a new dimension to the sound. He also established the concept of ‘'Gayan-Vadan Baaj'’ and ‘'Been Ang. He invented, designed and introduced a 30-stringed instrument in 2004 named as Sur-Santoor.
Sopori has been instrumental in reviving the old Sufiana compositions of his predecessors and adopted them in the Indian Classical scenario and also composed and introduced new Khayal compositions. Raga Nirmalkauns named after Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi and Raga MahaKali'' named after Goddess Mother Kali are Abhay's newly composed Ragas that have been widely acclaimed in the music world.

Composer

Abhay has composed music for Films, Telefilms, Short Films, Serials and Documentaries. He recently debuted as a composer in Bollywood commercial cinema with Shikara movie and composed the Love theme song and the Wedding Song titled .
His other work includes Mahatma, a documentary film by Government of India on Mahatma Gandhi, presented at the United Nations marking the first International Non-violence Day, the National award winning Kashmiri film Bub,, and the international award winning film Ziyarat.

Filmography

Television

Albums

Sopori started working with the State Government of Jammu and Kashmir to expand and accomplish his grandfather's dream and after several years of hard work and dedication, he was able to introduce music as a formal subject in the educational setup of Jammu and Kashmir. The initiative also called as The Music Initiative of Abhay Rustum Sopori has been a major step in the educational system of the state creating new streams in colleges and universities and, offering new job opportunities for the youth.
Sopori is a strong believer of peace and humanity and has been promoting the same ideology also preached by Mahatma Gandhi through music. He has introduced the concept of 'Common Song' aimed at providing a musical healing touch in Jammu and Kashmir under the banner of SaMaPa, which include musical hits like 'Aao Kadam Badhayain', 'Mere Jannet-e-Kashmir', 'Zameen', 'Nai Subha', 'Jammu-Ane', 'Wohi Khuda Hai', 'Dua', etc.
In 2005 Abhay, along with his father, founded the music academy and organization called SaMaPa, which is acclaimed for its work in Delhi and J&K. Post 2005, the programmes and events have been organized under the banner of SaMaPa. Some of the festivals include SaMaPa Sangeet Sammelan which is considered as the topmost music festival of Delhi; SaMaPa Aalap Festival which is one the biggest music festivals witnessed by over 50,000 people. SaMaPa Aalap Festival is held at a number of venues including border areas, cultural centers, jails, etc. at places like Sopore, Baramullah, Kupwara, Bandipora, Budgam, Anantnag, Ganderbal, Srinagar, Jammu, Samba, Khour, RS Pora, Rajouri, Poonch, Katra, Udampur, Akhnoor, etc. The festival was started in 2006 and over the years has presented thousands of young talent of Jammu and Kashmir.
Sopori has held charity concerts for various medical and social causes and also catastrophes like Kashmir earthquake in 2005 & Jammu and Kashmir floods in 2014.

Gallery