R K JAIN CLASSES

THE SOUND OF MUSIC

1. How old was Evelyin when she went to the Royal Academy of Music?
Evelyin Glennie is a famous Scottish percussionist. She was nearly seventeen years of age when
she went to the Royal Academy of Music.

2. When was her deafness first noticed? When was it confirmed?

Evelyin Glennie was short of hearing but no one knew about. It was her mother who discovered
the fact of her deafness when she was eight years old. Evelyin had hidden her deafness from all
her friends and teachers. When she turned eleven, her school performance began to deteriorate.
She was then taken to a specialist who confirmed her deafness and found that it was due to
gradual nerve damage.

3. Who helped her to continue with music? What did he do and say?
Despite her handicap, Evelyin Glennie wanted to live a normal life. One day she saw a girl
playing a musical instrument called xylophone. She at once decided to learn to play it. Most of her
teachers discouraged her. The percussionist Ron Forbes spotted her potential. He advised her not
to listen through her ears but try to listen and sense music some other way. She slowly began to
sense certain notes in different parts of body. She opened her mind and body to different sounds.

4. Name the various places and causes for which Evelyin performs?
Evelyin joined a youth orchestra. She scored the highest in the history of the audition for the
Royal Academy of Music by playing the xylophone. Now she is the most popular percussionist in
the world and gives free concerts in schools and hospitals. She inspires young musicians. She
gives inspiration to those who are deaf like her. Despite her achievements, she is quite humble and
simple-minded.

5. What was Evelyn’s message for the people?

In spite of her handicap, Evelyn was gifted with strong determination and hard work. She became
the source of inspiration to her audience. She had delighted millions of people with her
performance. Ann Richlin of Beethoven Fund for Deaf Children says that Evelyn is a shining
inspiration for the deaf children. Her message is: sincerity and honesty lead to success.
6. Even a deaf person can become the world’s most wanted percussionist. How did Evelyin achieve
this glory?
Evelyin Glennie is the world’s most popular percussionist. It is amazing to know that a deaf
person like her could become a great musician. The world belongs to those who accept challenges
and defy all odds in their life. Evelyn Glennie is a shining example and source of inspiration to all
those who have the fire to attain something sifnificant in life. She was determined to play
xylophone, which she learnt very well, she joined an orchestra and then moved to become a solo
performer. With her dedication and hardwork she has mastered over one thousand instruments.
She has learnt French and Japanese. She scored the highest in the history of the audition for the
Royal Academy of Music by playing xylophone. In 1991 she was awarded the Soloist of the Year
Award, the most famous award of Royal Philharmonic Society. She gives free concerts in schools
and hospitals. For deaf children she has become a symbol of success and a huge source of
inspiration.

7. Why did Aurangzeb ban the playing of the pungi?

Emperor Aurangzeb banned playing pungi which is the precursor of shehnai proper. He thought
that its sound was shrill, harsh and quite unpleasant. Since then pungi became the generic name
for the reeded instrument.
8. How is a shehnai different from pungi?
A barber decided to improve the sound of pungi. He took a pipe with a natural hollow stem. He
made seven holes on its body. When he played on it by closing and opening some of its holes, the
result was desirable, as it produced a sweet sound. It was played before the royalty and was liked.
So it has its name after its player a ‘nai’. Slowly, the sound of shehnai came to be viewed as
auspicious. It got related to marriage and other happy ceremonies.

9. Where was the shehnai played traditionally, How did Bismillah Khan change this?
Bismillah Khan’s ancestors were great shehnai players. His grandfather Rasool Bux was the
shehnai-nawaz of the Bhojpur king’s court. His father Paigambar Bux was also a popular shehnai
player. The shehnai was played traditionally in the temple of Vishnu at Varanasi. Bismillah
Khan’s maternal uncle used to play the shehnai there. Bismillah Khan practised playing shehnai in
a different way. His favourite places for practice were Balaji and Mangala Maiya temples. The
flowing water of the Ganga inspired him to invent new raagas.

10. Why did Bismillah Khan regularly go the nearby Bihariji temple in his childhood?
Bismillah Khan Khan would regularly go to the Bihariji temple to sing Bhojpuri’Chaita’. He used
to earn a laddu weighing 1.25 kg. It was on behalf of the local Maharaja.

11. When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?
Bismillah Khan got a big break when he became a popular shehnai player with the opening of All
India Radio in Lucknow in 1938. Then, it was Bismillah Khan who became the first Indian to
greet the nation with his shehnai on the Red Fort on August 15, 1947, the day when India
achieved freedom from the British slavery.

12. Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the USA?
Bismillah Khan refused to start a shehnai school in the USA, because there was no Ganga there.
Though, he visited USA on different occasions but missed seeing Hindustan.

13. Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that Bismillah Khan loves India and Banaras?
Bismisllah Khan loves India and Banaras very much. Once, he said that whenever he was in
foreign country, he kept yearning to see Hindustan and while he was in Mumbai, he thought of
only Banaras and the holy Ganga.

14. How did Bismillah Khan feel when he was honoured with the “Bharat Ratna”?
Bismillah Khan felt extremely proud and happy when he was honoured with the Bharat Ratna
award in 2001. It was the highest civilian award given to him. On this occasion he said, “Teach
your children music. This is Hindustan’s richest tradition: even the west is now coming to learn
our music.
15. Give an account of the achievements of Bismillah Khan.
Bismillah Khan was the most popular shehnai player during his life time. He is still source of
inspiration to a lot of musicians. He learnt to play shehnai well even in his childhood as he
belonged to a family of shehnai players. He would practise for hours on the holy banks of the
Ganga in Benaras. He invented new ragas which fascinated generations of music lovers. He
played shehnai on August 15, 1947 when India became free. He played Raag Kafi from the Red
Fort. He performed in India and in many foreign countries. King Zahir Shah of Afghanistan was
highly impressed by his art and gifted him priceless Persian carpets. He became the first Indian to
perform at the Loncoln Centre Hall in the USA. An auditorium in Teheran was named after him
“Tahar Mosiquee Ustaad Bismillah Khan”. National awards like the Padmashri, the Padma
Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan were conferred on him. He was honoured with India’s highest
civilian award “Bharat Ratna” in 2001.
He is a perfect example of secularism and rich cultural heritage of India. He was proud of the fact
that a Muslim like him could play shehnai at the Kashi Vishwanath temple.