Debabrata Biswas

Debabrata Biswas (also known as George Biswas and George-da; 22 August 1911 – 18 August 1980) was an Indian singer known for singing Rabindra Sangeet.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Biswas was born in 1911 in Kishoreganj, in the Mymensingh district of Bengal Province in British Colonial India.^[1] Around the time of his birth, King George V visited India for the Delhi Durbar.

Biswas' music is noted for his interpretation and use of Tagore's lyrics.^{[citation needed]} His earlier 1940s gramophone recordings of Tagore songs demonstrated stricter adherence to traditional musical rules, which he would subvert later in his career during the early 1960s.^{[citation needed]}

Biswas sang Rabindra Sangeet in Sanskrit, English, German, French, and Russian.^{[citation needed]} He received training in foreign languages at Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Kolkata.^{[citation needed]}

Filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak worked with Biswas on the song selection and playback of Tagore songs for a few of his films.^{[citation needed]} Biswas was actively engaged with the Indian People's Theatre Association for a while.^{[citation needed]} He sang a few songs set to music by Salil Choudhury, Hemanga Biswas, and Jyotirindra Moitra. Biswas also recorded many songs during the liberation movement of Bangladesh. Kazi Nazrul Islam served as Biswas's trainer when Biswas recorded songs by Nazrul.^{[citation needed]}

From 1964 onward, Biswas' challenging of accepted tune-notations, scansion, tempo, beat, and rhythms commonly associated with Tagore lyrics drew the attention of authorities. Additionally, he implemented Western musical instruments for accompaniment and interludes—a practice he continued until his death. He challenged listeners of Tagore songs by using the Spanish guitar, the saxophone, the clarinet, the piano, and the cello, along with the sitar, the sarod, the esraj, and the violin. Despite these departures from tradition, Biswas remained notable among a diverse population.

In the later part of the 1960s, many of his records were prohibited from commercial production for "wrong spirit, wrong tempo, and other melodic excesses not regarded as harmonious with the purity of Tagore compositions." Although he initially braced himself to meet the challenge, he later retreated and stopped all record production of his own volition. Despite further controversy, his public live performances continued until he withdrew again at the age of 60 due to a lifelong asthma affliction. His frustrations during this period are detailed in his autobiography, Bratya Janer Ruddha Sangit (or, The Stifled Music of an Outcast), published in 1979, a year before his death on 18 August 1980.

• Biography at debabratabiswas.in