How old was Evelyn when she went to the Royal Academy of Music?

Evelyn was seventeen years old when she went to the Royal Academy of Music in London.

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

Her deafness was first noticed by her mother when Evelyn was eight years old. She was once waiting to play the piano. When her name was called out, she did not move. That was when her mother realized that Evelyn had not heard anything and her deafness was confirmed.

Who helped her to continue with music? What did he do and say?

Percussionist Ron Forbes was the first person to notice Evelyn’s potential. He began by tuning two large drums to different notes. He asked Evelyn not to listen through her ears but to try and sense the sound in some other manner. Suddenly Evelyn realized that she could feel the higher drum from the waist up and the lower drum from the waist down. Forbes repeated the exercise and Evelyn realized that she could sense certain notes in different parts of her body.

Name the various places and causes for which Evelyn performed.

Evelyn always delighted her audience. She had toured the United Kingdom with a youth orchestra. She had a very hectic international schedule. Apart from the regular concerts, she gave free concerts in prisons and hospitals. She gave high priority to classes for young musicians because of which she was a shining inspiration for deaf children.

How did Evelyn hear music?

Evelyn heard music by sensing the notes in different parts of her body. When Ron Forbes tuned two drums and asked her to sense the sound without using her ears, she realized that she could feel the higher drum from the waist up and the lower drum from the waist down. When she played the xylophone, she could sense the sound passing up the stick into her fingertips. By leaning against the drums, she could feel the resonances flowing into her body. On a wooden platform, she removed her shoes so that the vibrations could pass through her bare feet. She herself said that music poured in through every part of her body. It tingled in the skin, her cheekbones and even in her hair.

Why did Aurangzeb ban the playing of the pungi?

Emperor Aurangzeb banned the playing of the pungi in the royal residence for it had a shrill and unpleasant sound. It became the generic name for reedy noisemakers.

How is a shehnai different from a pungi?

Shehnai is a pipe with a natural hollow stem that is longer and broader than the pungi. It has seven holes on its body. When it is played, the closing and opening of some of the holes produce soft and melodious sounds.

Where was the shehnai played traditionally? How did Bismillah Khan change this?

Traditionally, the shehnai was part of the traditional ensemble of nine instruments found in royal courts. It was used only in temples and weddings. However, Ustad Bismillah Khan brought in the change by bringing it onto the classical stage.

When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?

Bismillah Khan had accompanied his uncle to the Allahabad Music Conference at the age of fourteen. At the end of his recital, Ustad Faiyaz Khan patted his back and told him to work hard so that he can achieve big in life. He got his big break with the opening of the All India Radio in Lucknow in 1938. He soon became an often-heard shehnai player on radio.

Where did Bismillah Khan play the shehnai on 15 August 1947? Why was the event historic?

On 15 August 1947 Bismillah Khan played the shehnai from the Red Fort. It was a historic day as India gained independence on that day. He became the first Indian to greet the nation with his shehnai. His audience included illustrious names such as Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi.

Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?

Bismillah Khan refused to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A. because he could not live outside India. His student, who had asked him to head the shehnai school, promised that he would recreate the atmosphere of Benaras by replicating the temples in the city. However he wanted to know if his student could also transport River Ganga  which his student obviously could not. He himself said that whenever he was in a foreign country, he kept yearning to see Hindustan.

Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that Bismillah Khan loved India and Benaras.

Bismillah Khan immensely loved India, particularly Benaras and Dumraon. In his initial years, the temple of Balaji,  Mangala Maiya, and the banks of River Ganga in Benaras became his favourite haunts where he could practice in peace and solitude. River Ganga’s flowing waters inspired him to improvise and invent ragas that were once thought to be beyond the range of shehnai.