THE NAZI FLED SURVIVOR WHO CREATED THE AKASHVANI TUNE

All India Radio’s iconic tune owes its origins to Walter Kauffman, a Nazi-fled survivor. In 1936, he composed a tune which was based on Raag Shivaranjini, that later became the iconic tune of the AIR.

Walter Kaufmann. Image Source: Wikimedia Foundations

Akashvani, or the All India Radio, is known for two things - its iconic dialogue (yeh akashvani hai), and its equally iconic AIR tune. All India Radio’s caller tune has been heard by hundreds of millions of people since its inception in 1936. Quite interestingly the iconic AIR tune, that the people of India know and love, is composed by a Jewish Refugee who fled during the Nazi Regime- Director of Music at AIR - Walter Kaufmann.

A performance at Willingdon Gymkhana. Image Source: scroll.in

The above picture shows Kaufmann playing the piano. Furthermore, this image also shows Edigio Verga, a legendary cellist, playing the cello; and Mehli Mehta – the father of Zubin Mehta – playing the violin. It was captured at the Willingdon Gymkhana, performed by the Bombay Chamber Music Society which Walter Kaufmann founded himself. Kaufmann's journey to AIR, and fleeing from the Nazi atrocious regime, is quite an interesting story in itself.

Walter Kofmann was born in 1907 in the city of Karlsbad of Bohemia in the present-day Czech Republic. He had lived and worked in Berlin and Prague for much of his life until the region became unsafe for Jews. He arrived in Mumbai in 1934, escaping from the tyranny of the Nazis, and stayed for nearly 14 years. It was during these years that Kaufmann was introduced to Indian classical music.

Kaufmann had a special interest in music early on during his childhood. He could read piano sheets at the age of six. In 1925, Kaufmann entered the Prague Conservatory where he studied music theory, composition, and piano. Soon after graduating from the Prague Conservatory in 1931, Kaufmann continued his passion for music and composition at the Berlin Hochschule für Musik.

After the Nazis invaded major parts of Europe, Jews were forced to flee to a safer place, and Kaufmann came to India.

In one letter, the musician explained his reason for coming to India -which was that he could easily get a visa. In the same letter, Kaufmann bluntly described his “alien and incomprehensible ” reaction toward Indian Music.

“As I knew that this music was created by people with heart and intellect, one could assume that many, in fact millions would be appreciating or in fact loving this music…I concluded that the fault was all mine and the right way would be to undertake a study tour to the place of its origin,” he wrote further.

The study tour was indeed rigorous. He read and learned about Indian Classical music - so much so he subsequently wrote various books on Indian Music - which is around seven to put a number. Some of his notable books were The Ragas of North India, The Ragas of South India, and Musical Notations of the Orient.

The AIR tune is based on raga Shivaranjini - consisting of instruments like violin, viola, cello, and tanpura. Kaufmann's composition style was unique. He was able to mix different types of music genres and deliver a perfect blend. His music contained a mix of both Western and Eastern essence.

Essentially, mixing and blending different music styles was indeed his style.

He also composed a number of works that combined Western and Indian musical traditions, including the opera Anasuya and the ballet The Peacock. Anasuya made its debut in 1939, and was honored with “India’s first radio opera”. In 1934, Kaufmann founded the Bombay Chamber Music Society - which became one of the most important musical organizations in India. Kaufmann also served as the music director of All India Radio from 1937 to 1946.

His work received many recognitions, one of the notable ones was those of Albert Einstein.

Letter by Albert Einstein recommending Kaufmann. Image Source - natedsanders.com

In a letter dated 23 January 1938, Einstein wrote a recommendation letter for Walter Kaufmann in German - which read

“Mr Walter Kaufmann of Prague, currently in Bombay (India), has been known to me for years as an inventive and gifted musician. He has already written many compositions, he is an authority on Eastern music, and he has had extensive experience as a teacher as well. With his youthful energy and likeable nature, he would be eminently suited for the position of director of choirs and orchestras in schools or universities”

After leaving India in 1946, Kaufmann briefly lived in England and Canada. He later moved to the United States, where he joined the faculty of the School of Music at Indiana University. He continued to write and research about Indian music until he died in 1984.

Surely, it was Indian Music that left a deep impact on his music and composition career. And it was his mastery of music composition because of which we got the Iconic AIR tune that millions of Indians hear.