Suresh "Bhai" Gaitonde began learning tabla with his father, a doctor by profession and a keen amateur musician. During his teenage years, he learned tabla from Balubhai Rukadikar, himself a student of the Delhi and Farukhabad tabla traditions. Around the age of twenty, Bhai Gaitonde met Pandit Jagannathbuwa Purohit.  Purohit was primarily a vocalist of the Agra gharana, and as “Gunidas” is known to us as a major, prolific composer of vocal compositions in the khayal genre.  However, he was also a renowned tabla player, and he imparted to Bhai a rigorous training that concentrated meticulously on sound production, clarity, and the fingering and technique appropriate to the traditional compositions of the various stylistic schools. Described by Bhai Gaitonde as a “wonderful relationship”, this association with Purohit continued for sixteen years until the latter’s sudden death in 1968. Bhai Gaitonde is often associated in the popular mind as being a prominent disciple of the unparalleled Ahmedjan Thirakwa. Although this is borne out by some uncanny musical resemblances, it may surprise many to learn that Bhai spent just three years with Thirakwa. Nevertheless, he did learn from Vinayakrao Ghangrekar for ten years, and Ghangrekar was a student of Subraiji Ankolekar who, like Thirakwa, was a student of Munir Khan “Laliyana”. In this clip (taken from the India Archive recording for which I wrote liner notes) Bhai Gaitonde plays several Purabi gats of Farukhabad and Lucknow, some made famous by Thirakwa.