The history of music education in India dates back to the ancient period when all education was imparted in Gurukulas and Ashrams of great Saints and Rishi-Munis. The system of modern institutionalization of education in a graded, time-bound structure was ushered in by the British rulers from the mid-nineteenth century. Indian music education was brought and structured in this system in the beginning of the twentieth century. Two stalwarts of Indian music in this century, Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar and Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande led and developed two strong and parallel traditions of this institutionalization of music education and training system. In 1926, Pt.Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande established a music school in Lucknow, a culturally vibrant princely state of Awadh, with the help and co-operation of Rai Umanath Bali and Rai Rajeshwar Bali and other music patrons and connoisseurs of Lucknow. This institution was inaugurated by the then governor of Awadh Sir William Marris and was named after him as “Marris College of Music”.
On 26th March 1966, the state Government of Uttar Pradesh brought this college under its control and aptly renamed it after its founder as “Bhatkhande College of Hindustani Music.”At the request of the State Government, the Government of India by a notification on 24th October,2000, declared this institute as “Deemed University “. It was subsequently renamed Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya in june, 2022 to reflect its broader commitment towards encompassing various art forms. Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya has a very glorious history with exemplary achievements in the past. The alumni of this University are spread all over the world and many are in the active pursuit of music education and performance. Naushad, Talat Mahmood, Shanti Hira Nand, Anup Jalota, Dilraj Kaur, Malini Awasthi, Smt. Padma Sharma, Dr. Purnima Pande are amongst the many such alumni. Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya is also a much sought after destination for Students from other states as well as Foreign Countries.