Ravi Shankar

Ravi Shankar (born April 7, 1920 in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India) is a Bengali-Indian musician best known for his virtuosity on the sitar. A disciple of Allauddin Khan (founder of the maihar gharana of indian classical music), Pandit Ravi Shankar is arguably the best-known Indian instrumentalist, and is well known for his pioneering work in bringing the power and appeal of the indian classical music tradition, as well as indian music and its performers in general, to the West. This was done through his association with The Beatles as well as with his own personal charisma. His musical career spans over six decades and Shankar currently holds the Guinness Record for the longest international career. He is the father of both Grammy award winning singer Norah Jones, and Anoushka Shankar, also a noted sitarist.