Pandit Hom Nath Upadhyaya's Biography
Born in Nepal and educated in Nepal and India, Pandit Hom Nath Upadhyaya is a master teacher, performer, and scholar of the tabla, which he has played for over 40 years. His gurus include Pandit Ramji Mishra of Benares, Pandit Shambhu Mishra of Kathmandu, Nepal, and the legendary Ahmedjaan Thirakwa. He holds a B.A. in English, History, and Sanskrit from Gorakhpur University and an M.A. in Music from Prayag Sangeet Samiti in Allahabad, India.
Hom Nathji has taught and performed around the world, including France; Germany; Austria; Switzerland; the former Yugoslavia; India; Pakistan; Bangladesh; and the USA, where he has taught privately and at universities in Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and California. He has served as instructor at the Royal Nepal Academy and at Tribuhvan University in Kathmandu, and holds an ongoing teaching position at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is the recipient of the Kirateshwar Sangeetshram award, the Narayan Sangeet Pratishthan fellowship from the Royal Nepal Academy, and an Interdisciplinary Humanities Center Collaborative Projects Grant from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Hom Nathji is a sensitive accompanist and soloist in a wide variety of instrumental, vocal, and dance genres. Early in his career he played in the film orchestra of famed music director S. D. Burman and he has performed and/or recorded with top artists from both Hindustani and Western musical traditions, including Pandit Manilal Nag, Pandit Tarun Bhattacharya, Mahesh Kale, Steve Gorn, Jim Pepper, and Paul Livingstone, among many others.
A respected educator, Hom Nathji continues to instruct students from around the world, including his son Pramod Upadhyaya who is already an accomplished musician in his own right in his native Nepal. Hom Nathji has written two instructional books on tabla, one in Nepali (Rhythmic Garland) and one in English (From Kashi to Kantipur), and is currently working on a project documenting the history of the Nepali tabla gharana.
Hom Nathji has taught and performed around the world, including France; Germany; Austria; Switzerland; the former Yugoslavia; India; Pakistan; Bangladesh; and the USA, where he has taught privately and at universities in Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and California. He has served as instructor at the Royal Nepal Academy and at Tribuhvan University in Kathmandu, and holds an ongoing teaching position at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is the recipient of the Kirateshwar Sangeetshram award, the Narayan Sangeet Pratishthan fellowship from the Royal Nepal Academy, and an Interdisciplinary Humanities Center Collaborative Projects Grant from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Hom Nathji is a sensitive accompanist and soloist in a wide variety of instrumental, vocal, and dance genres. Early in his career he played in the film orchestra of famed music director S. D. Burman and he has performed and/or recorded with top artists from both Hindustani and Western musical traditions, including Pandit Manilal Nag, Pandit Tarun Bhattacharya, Mahesh Kale, Steve Gorn, Jim Pepper, and Paul Livingstone, among many others.
A respected educator, Hom Nathji continues to instruct students from around the world, including his son Pramod Upadhyaya who is already an accomplished musician in his own right in his native Nepal. Hom Nathji has written two instructional books on tabla, one in Nepali (Rhythmic Garland) and one in English (From Kashi to Kantipur), and is currently working on a project documenting the history of the Nepali tabla gharana.