Tribute! Ut. Salamat Ali Khan & Ut. Nazakat Ali Khan, Voices From Heaven!

By Kovid Rathee (http://kovidrathee.wordpress.com/2011/01/)

"Sometimes I wonder about the times when Tansen was alive and he sung in the court of Akbar. I envy the people who got to listen to him. Now that the time has passed and I know that I can’t listen to Tansen, ever. Then I listen to the duo Ustad Salamat Ali Khan & Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan, and I don’t miss Tansen. One of my favorite quotes by Ustad Salamat Ali Khan is when in a mehfil he said, “Naasamjh to Rafi ko bhi Tansen keh deta hai, mujhe bhi keh dega.”

Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, the most prominent figure of the Shaam Chaurasi Gharana, situated in Pakistan. The singing tradition goes back to the times when the ruler was Hazrat Daata Shajlaal Shah, who was a contemporary to Akbar. The family has always had a tradidion of singing in duos which is evident by the family tree of Shaam Chaurasi Gharana published in various archives. Ustad Salamat Ali Khan & Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan were put into the formal training at very tender ages of 7 and 5 respectively. And it is of no surprise that Ustad Salamat Ali Khan gave his first public performance when he was around the age of 7-8. The duo made their debut at the greatest festival of Hindustani Music, that is, the Harballabh Mela in 1941. In his autobiography, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan says, “We were so small, we had to be lifted onto the stage.” But of course, after the performance a learned audience of Harballabh Mela and the great masters of music sitting right in front of the duo were left stirred when they performed Raag Miyan Ki Todi. During this period, the brothers began to give regular broadcasts from All India Radio, Lahore and two gramophone records of the young Salamat Ali Khan were published. In 1943, the duo received their first official state invitation from the Maharaja of Champanagar, a small princely state in Bihar. Their stay in Champanagar lasted a few months and was followed by performances at the Allahabad and Gwalior music conferences.

To listen to Raags: http://sarangi.info/nazakat-salamat

Basant

Desi

Bhopali (Vilambit) &  Bhopali (Tarana)

Kedara

Nat Naraini (Vilambit) & Nat Naraini (Drut)

Kalavati

Rageshri

Madhuvanti

Gavati

Jaijaivanti

After the creation of Pakistan, the family settled in Multan and lived in relative obscurity for the next couple of years, which brings me to the next point. The two masters were also adept at the Hindustani Light Classical forms of music such as Thumri, Dadra and especially Kaafi. It is not usually seen that a performed of such hardcore Indian Vocals is also an expert of such light forms of music. But, they both were tremendously skilled at performing the Thumris and Dadras, in their own style. Basically, Thumri and Dadra are the vocal styles of Eastern States of India, mainly Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. But later on these were made popular by Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan in the Pubjab region and then by Ustad Salamat Ali Khan & Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan. These two had a very different style of rendering the light forms. They were the maestros of a form called Kaafi, which involves lyrics from Sufi Saints. As they settled in Multan, the had an influence of the local singing and called it Multani Kaafi. No one ever sang Multani Kaafi better than them. Ishq Anookhari Peer, Sau Sau Sool Andar De, one of the broadcasts on PTV of Pakistan.


Ustad Salamat Ali Khan sings Multani Kafi ( Nikhar PTV Live) Sanwal mor muharan
Sarangi: Ustad Nazim Ali Khan -  Tabla: Ustad Miyan Shaukat Hussain Khan Sahib
Audience: Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Ali, Tari Khan, Rajab Ali, Pervez Mehdi, Masood Rana, Ustad Fateh Ali Khan, Saiyyan Choudry, Bilquees Khanum, Rubina Badar, Asha Posle, Nisar Bazmi and Others

Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan, without whom Ustad Salamat Ali Khan was incomplete. Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan was an expert in backing the thunderous and often overpowering performances of Ustad Salamat Ali Khan. But Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan never did try to fight for identity. But nevertheless, due to rifts between the two brothers they, for a few years, stopped performing together. But, indeed they got back, soon after which Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan died. Ustad Salamat Ali Khan now performed with the son of Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan in various overseas concerts, leaving the world audience spellbound by thunderous performances of his favorite raagas like Miyan Ki Malhar, Darbari, Gujari Todi and so on. Ustad Salamat Ali Khan has also got the credit for creating various raagas of his own such as Madh Kauns, Shamwati, Thames, Nandeshwari, Milan Gandhar, Kanwal Bhairav and more. He composed several bandishes under the pen name ‘Manarang’.

Raag Madhkauns - Ut. Salamat Ali Khan & Ut. Nazakat Ali Khan

Raag Madhkauns was created by Ustad Salamat Ali Khan Sahib ( source 'Sadarang.com' ). It is the mixture of the Raag Malkauns with the Raag Jog. it has two diffirent Gandhars (one can listen), whereas Malkauns bears only one, that is 'g'. So its neither the Malkauns nor the Madh-u-kauns, Madhukauns excludes Dhaivat, includes shudh Pancham and uses shudh Madhyam (in comparison to Madhkauns).

A maestro of Taans, Layakaari, Gamaks like thunderstorms. He always rendered a Raag in its purest form with all the elements which must be present in a rendition such as a long Alaap, a Vilambit rendition at length, then a Madhyalaya or Drut Bandish, then finally a Tarana A renderer of Ati Vilambit and Vilambit Khayal like no one ever was before. He was an expert at handling the most difficult taals ever composed. He was also the few people who had the command over the 3 saptaks or octaves with ease, especially the 3 saptak ki Sapaat Taan, and some other Taans which consisted of 3 octaves in one breath. Some of the Taans were so complex and so powerful and fast that I have not heard anybody render those again with that ease and clarity, his son Shafqat Ali Khan has tried hard doing so. It is not quite feasible for other artists to do this at ease. He touched the Mandra Saptak’s Shadaj, and then in a split second the listener would find him at the Taar Saptak’s Shadaj.

It is quite evident that the incredible and powerful Gamaks were the immediate result of the rigurous training in the form of Dhrupad Gaayaki. They used to called it the Khayal Gaayaki with a Dhrupad Ang. In fact, other than their father, the two brothers received vocal training from an array of greats of Hindustani Classical Music such as Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Ustad Niaz Hussain Shaami, Ustad Aashiq Ali Khan, Ustad Fateh Ali Khan Qawwal ( Father of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ).


Ustad Nazakat Ali & Ustad Salamat Ali  - Kafi - Ishq Anokhri Pir Ai

A rendering of the duo is just now another hour of Hindustani Classical Music. No, it is not. It is truly a rendering, as is stirres every atom of the body and transports one into a state of trance. It is beyond words to explain their renditions. The only way to find out is to listen to them for yourself. There are numerous recordings commercially available, and also uploaded on the internet by some collectors. I’ve been blessed to hear to a lot of the recordings which range upto 2 hours. Rendering of a Raag for two hours when at a public gathering is no fun. It is pure skill, in fact more than skill.

In a recording of Raag Nandeshwari, London 1987, he expresses his concerns about Hindustani music and it’s future and complexity. He describes an instance when he was practicing hard hitting Taans in Multan and his Maayi/Mother, out of despair, asked him to stop practicing and said, “Yeh wo gaana hai, khud hi gaaoge, khud hi sunoge”, but of course young Salamat Ali explained to his mother as how important it was to carry forward the tradition and the art and how it was so much of a noble thing to do. He said “Jo sunenge wo bhi bahut oonche log honge.” About the people who didn’t know about the art, he said, “Unko bhi Allah salamat rakhe jo nahin sunte”, and said, “Unse kya gila jo nahin jaante. Gila to unse hai jo jaante hain aur nahin aate”. He had very optimistic views about the future of this music. He said that people will show up in more numbers at the concerts and performances in near future. In an 80 minute rendering of Raag Bairagi Bhairav at Lyllpur in 1982 at the Barsi funtion of Ustad Fateh Ali Khan ( Father of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ), he expresses deep respect for the artists Ustad Fateh Ali Khan and Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan, which brings me to mention another of his great qualities which is the respect he gave to other contemporary artists. He usually spoke for a minute or two before each of his public performances. And the words that came out of his mouth were pure gold, as if some saint were speaking. He was.

Ustad Nazakat & Ustad Salamat Ali Khan - Raag Darbari, Jhoomra, part 1

Ustad Salamat Ali Khan & Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan is often regarded as one of the greatest singing duos ever in the history of musicians. Their name is up there with the great singer of the Patiala Gharana, Alia-Fattu, Karnail-Gernail. I have been blessed to have heard them. Couldn’t see them perform live, physically. But both of them will ever remain in my heart, singing Miyan Ki Malhar and Darbari and so on, just like they are now".

Ustad Salamat Ali Khan & Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan, Voices From Heaven!

By Kovid Rathee (http://kovidrathee.wordpress.com/2011/01/) (http://bandishein.wordpress.com/)

Written for Veronique Lerebours, founder of www.HarmoNYom.org - January 29 2011

RIP! Shrikant Deshpande, vocalist and grandson of the legendary Sawai Gandharva

Shrikant Deshpande*, the 62-year-old noted Kirana Gharana vocalist and grandson of the legendary Sawai Gandharva, passed away in Pune on Saturday January 29 2011 due to cancer. A disciple of the late Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Deshpande had given his last public concert at the Sawai Smarak in Shivajinagar last Sunday. (Source: http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_grandson-of-sawai-gandharva-passes-away_1500892) 

Deshpande was born into a family of musicians. He was the son of Pramila, the daughter of Rambhau Kundgolkar alias Sawai Gandharva, an exponent of the kirana gharana. He was initiated into music by his father Nanasaheb Deshpande, a disciple of Sawai Gandharva. He learned music under Mohammad Hussain Khansaheb and Saraswatibai Rane.

Shrikant Deshpande was a noted classical singer and the secretary of Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, the organising body behind the Sawai Gandharva Music Festival. He had also taken lessons in classical music from Pandit Firoz Dastur. He was gifted with a mellifluous voice. He began training under Pt Bhimsen Joshi from 1980.The Ragamala Performing Arts, Canada and the Indian Council of Cultural Relations organised his musical tour in the United States and Canada. He also conducted a workshop on Indian classical music in the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg in Canada. He had music concerts for the Maharashtra Mandal in Dubai and the United Kingdom.

Deshpande organised music festivals in Hyderabad Aurangabad, Udgir, Mumbai, Belgaum and Baroda to promote young artists. He worked as advisor with the Lalit Kala Kendra at the University of Pune.He has featured in the Gharana Sammelan in Mumbai and has had the opportunity of singing in prestigious festivals like Tansen Sangeet Samaroha in Gwalior, SPICMACAY and Sawai Gandharva Music Festival in Pune. (Source: http://www.punemirror.in)

* Photo courtesy: Nilesh Walimbe http://www.flickr.com/people/25365312@N08/

Tribute! Siddheshwari Devi "A feeling heart, a fecund mind, and an expressive voice"

With the passing away of Siddheswari Devi on March 18 1977, the last of the four great pillars of Hindustani light classical music is gone. First went Begum Akhtar in 1974 at the age of 60, and then her older contemporaries, Rasoolan Bai, Badi Moti Bai and Siddheswari Devi. All four of them were inheritors of great traditions of music from a glorious era of the past when music dominated the lives of musicians from childhood to death. They were musical `stars' who shone brilliantly in the courtly era; but when the `darbari' era ended they did not hesitate to step out into the glare of public acclaim.


Thumris were once sung with abhinaya. When classicists began to frown down on this type of music with abhinaya, the singers took to the Bol-Banav-ki Thumri in which the emotional contents of songs are effectively brought out through vocal expressiveness only, that is, beauty of notes, voice modulations swara-combinations, and a specially emotion-charged style of singing. Bhaiya Ganpatrao, Moizuddin, and Shyamlal Khatri were some of the trail-blazers who gave this modern orientation to Thumri. Among those who have kept up these traditions till now in full glory, the outstanding names of this century have been Siddheswari Devi, Rasoolan Bai, Badi Moti Bai, Begum Akhtar, Mahadev Prasad Misra, and Girija Devi. Girija Devi is far younger than the others, and is of a different generation.


Born into a famous musical family in Varanasi in 1903, Siddheswari traced her musical lineage to her maternal grandmother Maina Devi, a reputed singer of Kashi of nearly a century ago. She was the inheritor of great musical traditions from a family which produced several famous singers like Maina Devi, Vidyadhari Devi, Rajeswari Devi and Kamaleswari Devi. As Siddheswari lost her mother when she was barely 18 months old, she was brought up by her maternal aunt, Rajeswari, who was a famed disciple of Maina Devi, Mithailal, and of the great Moizuddin himself. Brought up in this musical atmosphere, Siddheswari absorbed a great deal of the art right from her infancy. Her childhood was an unhappy one as she lost her father also very soon. About this period of her life, she once said : "We did not have luxuries like the gramophone. But our neighbours had one. I used to go to them to listen to the records of popular singers like Janaki Bai, Gauharbai and several others. How their music used to captivate me!".



Tappa in Raag JhinJoti - Siddheshwari Devi of Benaras

Noticing the talent and eagerness of the young girl, Siyaji Maharaj began to teach her. Siyaji's father Shyamacharan Misra, and uncle Ramcharan Misra had been good musicians. About her guru, Siddheswari used to say : "No one could possibly get a more generous and affectionate guru. Having no children of his own, he treated me like his own daughter. He taught me all the basic ragas and a large number of Khayals, Tappas, and Taranas. He taught me with all his heart, and I practised my music with intense concentration and devotion. Nowadays, alas! the students are all in a hurry to acquire a diploma or a degree; they have no lagan."

After the death of Siyaji Maharaj, she learnt for a while from Ustads Rajab Ali Khan of Dewas, and Inayat Khan of Lahore. However, her greatest guru, the one to whom she attributes most of her musical training was none other than Bade Ramdasji of Varanasi. Her face glowed with pride and veneration whenever she spoke about this generous guru who taught the eager disciple magnanimously. Nostalgically recalling those times of close guru-shishya bonds, Siddheswari once remarked to me : "The age of such great and generous gurus seems to have gone. No longer does one come across the really devoted type of pupils either. Today they are all in such a hurry----"
Later on in life, when she joined the Bharatiya Kala Kendra in Delhi as a professor, she earned the reputation for being a sincere and conscientious teacher. When I mentioned this to her, she simply remarked : "Why not, Beti? Let something of my treasures remain with others after l am gone".


Siddheswari made her unforgettable debut at a Calcutta conference many many decades ago. Young Siddheswari's name was billed along with those of many of the veterans of the time, such as Pt. Omkarnath Thakur, Pt. Dilip Chandra Vedi, Ustad Faiyaz Khan and others. Her khayals in Malhar and Suha-Sughrai, and her thumris, elicited high praise and medals galore from Pt. Omkarnathji and Ustad Faiyaz Khan. Another glorious performance of her's was in the All India. Music Conference in Bombay in which Ustads Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Faiyaz Khan also were to sing. Siddheswari concluded her superb recital with such an intensely emotional rendering of the Bhairavi-Thumri (Kaahe Ko daari re gulal Brajlal Kanhayi) that the Aftab-e-Mausiqui refused to sing after her! He said to her : "After such music there is no room for any more. After Gauhar Malika, the crown of the Thumri rests on your head". Such was the grand magnanimity of the musical giants of the past!



Siddehswari Devi. According to All India Radio, this song is a kajri. However, the "ho rama" refrain is usually found in "chaiti" songs. Chaiti refers to chaitra mas - the first month of the Hindu year, and in this month the festival of Ramnavmi occurs.
As kajri dadra holi and chaiti are part of the north Indian folk tradition, they are often related. Many folk singers have sung according to season and festival, and have little knowledge of raaga. Today there are still styles of singing that are not sung on stage.

After her first concert appearance at the age of 18, she began to receive invitations for performances in Rampur, Jodhpur, Lahore, Mysore and various other states which used to patronize classical music during that time. In the next 4 or 5 decades, she sang in many royal durbars, music conferences national programmes, radio concerts and so on until she became "an institution by herself in view of her enormous repertory and heritage of a rich musical tradition." In recognition of her valuable contributions to the enrichment and perpetuation of the Banaras (Poorab) sang of light classical music, Siddheswari was honoured with the Presidential Award in 1966, the Padmasri in 1967 the D. Litt from Rabindra Bharati University, Calcutta, and the title of "Desikottama" from the Viswa Bharati University. When we felicitated her on the Award, her humble and philosophical reply was : "It's all very well; but I shall continue to deserve these, only as long as I can go on singing well enough to please you all". In spite of all the fame that she earned, she remained simple, unassuming and homely till the end. Among contemporary musicians, Kesarbai Kerkar and M.S. Subbalakshmi were the artistes she admired most.

Few musicians in recent times had such a vast repertoire as Siddheswari had. Her rich storehouse included a large number of Khayals, Thumris, Dadras, Tappas, Kajaris, Chaitis and Bhajans. "A feeling heart, a fecund mind, and an expressive voice" are the prime requisites for a good light classical singer. Even when her voice had become "temperamental and thick" in old age, she could make up for it by a rare emotional fervour, and she could hold her audiences by her mood of intense absorption and her ability to bring out the emotional contents of the romantic or devotional themes. Siddheswari's music brought out all the salient features of the Banaras style, such as simple charm, intensity of feeling, and effective expression of emotions through sheer purity of notes, "meends" and voice modulations. She said to me once : "Although my thumri is fully of the Banaras ang, I incorporate elements of the Khayal into it. You may say that my thumri- singing is Khayal angapradhan". She added spice and charm by sprinkling short, swift tappa-like taans and trills. In her early days, she was deeply impressed by the singing of Gauharjan, Zohrabai, and Malikajan. As a member of cultural delegations, Siddheswari gave recitals in Rome, Kabul, and Kathmandu.


Siddheswari cherished not only the songs galore that she had learnt from her revered guru Bade Ramdasji, but also the lofty principles that he impressed on his disciples. He used to advise her: "Music is the medium for pleasing and attaining God. You should never feel proud of any success. Always remain humble. The day your tears flow during your sangeetsadhana, your music will have attained mellowness and maturity".


No wonder she always believed that both "Siddhi" and "Ishwar" can be attained through devoted sangeet-sadhana. Her deeply religious temperament had a great impact on her singing. In the last years of her life, the Pukaars in her Thumris and Bhajans were like cries from an anguished devotee's heart. With eyes closed, mind absorbed, and left hand cupping her left ear (to receive the full drone of the Tanpura), she used to pour her heart out through her music. Siddheswari remained a most warm-hearted, simple, and loveable person, "an extraordinary amalgam" of innocence, courage, humour, generosity, youthful zest for life, and a rare dignity. Her life was, by no means, a happy or smooth one. She had an unhappy childhood and "an emotionally tumultuous" youth, and she had to undergo many bitter experiences in life. But all of these seem to have added to her natural dignity, strength and wisdom. One of her admirers described her as "a vast reservoir of warmth, an unfailing fountainhead of inspiration, a manifestation of humanity at its most compelling and earthy.... and yet a being full of sparks and sudden vertical ascents to the mystic regions where inspiration has its divine origins". She did not have the facilities to devote herself to sadhana; living like a recluse. She practised her music all the time, while she was cooking, washing clothes, or doing any of the ordinary household chores. Music was her very life.



Supreme Khamaj Dadra! A forgotten gem! One of the greatest thumri exponents of Banaras Gharana and a contemporary of Rasoolan Bai, Siddheshwari Devi is an artist par excellence!

The death of Siddheswari Devi has left a big void in the world of light classical music. Shanta Devi, her elder daughter whom she had trained up to follow her footsteps has remained in obscurity owing to poor health. Surprisingly, it is her younger daughter Savita Devi who has zoomed into the limelight as a delightful and popular singer, and it is Savita who shows every sign of taking her illustrious mother's place. Versatile and attractive Savita is not only a graduate (an M.A, and Sangeetalankar) and a good Sitariya, but she has also shaped into a confident and popular vocalist with a wide repertoire of Khayals, and light classical varieties. Gifted with an appealing, melodious voice covering 3 octaves or more, she has undergone years of training in khayals under Pt. Moni Prasad of the Kirana gharana. She has a natural flair for the light classical varieties in which she was extensively trained by her mother whom she used to accompany as a supporting singer in many concerts. While working as Head of the Department of Music in Daulatram College (University of Delhi), she is continuing her own music riyaz tirelessly.

Many years before her death, Siddheswari had once told me : "My greatest ambition is to die while singing a perfect taan. I feel closest to God when I am lost in my music." Begum Akhtar also had expressed an almost identical wish which was fulfilled because she died in the peak of her glory, giving a memorable performance before the dropping of the final curtain.

"Maa Siddheshwari Devi" by SAVITA DEVI . This book of reminiscences lovingly records and painstakingly traces the journey of the life of Siddheshwari Devi—the legendary singer of Hindustani classical music. http://www.rolibooks.com/lotus/biography/-/maa-siddheshwari-devi/  

But Siddheswari who lived till her seventies, had no such luck. She had been helplessly bed-ridden for many months prior to the sad end. In a TV interview prior to her last illness, she had confessed with dignity:- "There was a time when I used to sing for the public. Now I sing to please my God. My soul craves to go back to its original abode".

Malini Menon, one of Siddheswari's pet-pupils who had become more like a daughter to her, writes:- "Maa remained a student all her life. . .She had a child-like thirst for knowledge and she was ever so generous as she could not bear to see anybody in want... Maa was turbulent as the waves, and yet calm like the distant sea. She was at peace with herself and had prepared for the journey of the soul to eternity. When the moment came, she accepted it with grace."

Siddheswari Devi's last brilliant recital was in the Radio Sangeet Sammelan (a couple of years before her end) in which she sang with a bubbling, youthful zest, accompanied on the Sarangi by Pt. Gopal Misra (who is no more), and on the Tabla by Ramji Misra. Eyes twinkling, the solitary diamond in her big nose ring flashing points of light, a warm smile on her paan-reddened lips, Maa's homely figure emerges in one's memory. But as soon as she sat on the stage for a recital, one realised that she belonged to an entirely different world, and that her life had known "no horizons other than music". As I recall that last inspiring recital of hers in the Radio Sangeet Sammelan, memories of several other great past concerts of this music-devotee come to my mind, and her plaintive Jogiya echoes in my memory:"O Jogi ! Constantly uttering the name of Rama, you have become one with Him, leaving your little hut so empty---".

(Source: From: "Great Masters of Hindustani Music" by Susheela Misra.

http://www.chembur.com/anecdotes/siddheshwari.htm

Posted on RMIC by Rajan Parrikar as part of Great Masters Series.)

Tribute! Pt. Bhimsen Joshi by Vibhaker Baxi - Chairman/Navras Records

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi (4th February 1922 ~ 24th January 2011) by Vibhaker Baxi - Chairman & MD/Navras Records:

"Today the quintessential voice of Hindustani, nay, Indian, Classical Music has been lost to this world.  Pandit Bhimsen Joshi-ji passed away this morning at Pune in India at the age of 88. To define Bhimsenji in terms of his Kirana Gharana would be a futile attempt at marking the man and his magic. His art transcended the fineries of Gharana definitions - his became a style of his own. To a majority of lovers of Khyal music his voice, his singing style became the benchmark by which they informed their musical sensibilities.

My own awakening to classical music came through his singing. I remember from a very early age being struck by his song "Ketaki Ghulab Juhi? performed with Manna Dey in the film Basant Bahar. My re-introduction to the UK classical music scene on my return there in 1985 was through a series of his concerts in London, which led to my long association with Jay Visva Deva of Sama Arts Network which in turn led to the eventual creation of the Navras Records label in 1992. My own late father's utter devotion to Ustad Abdul Karim Khan Saheb's music (Bhimsenji's Guru's Guruji) also must have had some subconscious influences on me. Whichever way I look at it, my absorption in Hindustani music
had the aura of Bhimsen Joshi bestowing its magic on my sensibilities.

So today I deeply mourn the loss of this legendary maestro, a lion among vocalists, and yet a rare Maestro who had no ego, no tantrums, just a lot of quiet dignity, a man of simple needs and no demands! He was at peace with his achievements and his craft in that he did not seek any approvals, any awards. Even during his performances, at the end of each item, he would not wait for the applause to die down before he would move on into the start of his next rendering - so un-preoccupied he was with his own ego. Once when barely 100 people turned up at a busy week day concert of his in London, responding to an apologetic promoter he simply said it did not matter to him if there were 10, 100 or a 1,000 people in his audience. He would be still giving them his utmost! He would not be affected or offended by the size of his audience.  

Bharat Ratna Pt. Bhimsen Joshi - Raag Multani (1957)

I had the privilege of attending the Sawai Gandharva Festival at Pune some years back when he just resumed performing there after a break of a year or two due to his brain tumor and subsequent surgery. He was rather shaky in his performance - his voice was weak and trembling a bit - but the audience was just happy to see him sing and with tears in their eyes and as if saying to him, "don't worry Panditji - we know what you are trying to sing and that's all we are hearing the way it always was.." When I went to bid him farewell at the end of the festival he just said to me "Baxi Saheb, maine theek to gaya na?" - (Baxi Saheb, was my singing okay?) - a legend asking a simple listener like me and that was the measure of this hugely modest man! And from that state of his health he recovered his usual gusto and virtuosity with some more gems of performances, including the "Tapasya" concert (October 2001 at Mumbai - Shanmukhananda Hall) released by Navras on CD and DVD. 

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi was born in Gadag (now in the state of Karnataka) on 4th February 1922, well away from the main centers of activity of Hindustani music, and with no family tradition of professional music-making to build on. Legend tells of how, determining on a musical quest, he left home in his teens and traveled over much of the subcontinent, learning his art from several masters in musical centers such as Gwalior, Lucknow and Rampur. Best known as a disciple of the renowned singer Sawai  Gandharva Rambhau Kundgolkar, Bhimsen Joshi has been consequently regarded as a representative of the Kirana Gharana made famous by Sawai Gandharva's guru, Ustad Abdul Karim Khan.

Bhimsen Joshi has been performing in public since the age of 19, both in India and abroad, till around 2007. It is a measure of his stature in the Indian music world that he has received such high national honours as the Sangeet Natak Academy Award, the Padma Shree and Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and the Bharat Ratna (The Gem of India). This last and the rarest of honors ever given by the Indian Government was bestowed upon him so late in his life as to almost make it a travesty. I hope the powers that be will remember this and do not make such omissions in the future to such deserving individuals.

He has earned the respect of all for his musicianship, and for the immense power and majesty of his performances. For many he epitomized this aspect of musical expression, the grandeur of the serious Hindustani ragas, although he is also appreciated as a singer of the devotional Bhajans and other light classical genres such as the Thumri. His voice, style and sheer presence are instantly recognisable, his performances amongst the essential experiences of Indian music. The Navras Catalogue contains 13 CD titles (20 discs) and one DVD title of Panditji, including some rather rarely performed ragas from his repertoire.

We have been greatly privileged to have been blessed with his presence on our Catalogue and in our musical lives. No doubt a very major presence in the annals of Indian Classical Music, his music and presence will remain forever in the minds and hearts of all music lovers."
(Pictures Copyright by T. Nayaran)

Vibhaker Baxi - Chairman & MD (January 24 2011)

Navras Records Limited

music@navrasrecords.com  

http://www.navrasrecords.com

"There will be no other Pandit Bhimsen Joshi and it would be best if we learn to celebrate that fact"...  

 January 25th, 2011, By Shubha Mudgal: 

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/op-ed/there-will-be-no-other-panditji-285

 

 

 

RIP! Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, the Emperor of all melodies...

 

Bharat Ratna Pt. Bhimsen Joshi 

the Emperor of all melodies, rest in eternal peace... 

Today, one of the most incredible Indian Classical Musician of our time, 

A true music maestro breathed his last!

He will be missed... RIP!

 Pandit Bhimsen Joshi has passed away this morning in Pune/India. The celebrated Hindustani classical vocalist, who was a Bharat Ratna awardee, led the renaissance of Indian classical music with the passion and power of a one-man chorus in an epic saga of struggle and single pointed thirst for music.
He was the recipient of several awards including the Padma Vibhushan, the Padma Bhushan and Padma Shree, Joshi added his own distinctive style excelling in gamakar, meend and tanakriya and adapting characteristics from other gharanas to create a unique vocal idiom.
Joshi's rendition of 'Miley Sur Mera Tumhara' along with other doyens of music--Balmurli Krishna and Lata Mangeshkar -- that virtually became an unofficial national anthem in a humble way in 1988 captured the hearts of millions of Indians!...
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Legendary-vocalist-Bhimsen-Joshi-passes-away-in-Pune/Article1-653996.aspx


 http://ibnlive.in.com/news/bharat-ratna-bhimsen-joshi-passes-away-in-pune/141342-3.html

The death of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi on Monday plunged the entire classical music community in sorrow.

Prabha Atre, an exponent of the Kirana Gharana, called Joshi an extraordinary man, “who was not just Bharat ratna but ‘vishwa' ratna. With his demise, the entire Indian classical music community feels orphaned. It is now a big responsibility on us, to continue the rich tradition left behind by him,” a tearful Ms. Atre said....

http://www.thehindu.com/arts/music/article1121836.ece

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhimsen_Joshi

Pt. Bhimsen Joshi - Miyan Ki Malhar - Pune, 1971

Accompaniments- Pt.Eknath Thakurdas - harmonium, Pt.Chandrakant Kamat- tabla

Tribute! Ustad Muhammad Sharif Khan Poonchwaley

For over 30 years, Ustad Muhammad Sharif Khan Poonchwaley (1928-80) held complete sway over the sitar in Pakistan. He died very early. There are only a few recordings of him available. A worthy progeny of his father Ustad Abdur Rahim Khan, he burst upon the music scene by performing at a major music conference in Lahore in 1942. Also an accomplished player of the vichtre veena, he is to be placed in the same class of great sitar players as Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan.
He was given the Pride of Performance medal in 1968.

Mohammad Shareef Khan Poonchwale ~ Tabla: Shaukat Hussain Khan  - Darbari

Raag Darbari 

Ut. Sharif Khan Poonchwaley - Raga Aeman

Tribute! Begum Akhtar "The Mallika-e-Ghazal" (Queen of Ghazals)

Akhtaribai Faizabadi, or Begum Akhtar as she was more popularly known, was born on 7th October, 1914 in the small town of Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh in northern India. She came from a courtesan background--her mother was Mushtari Bai and was born in a poor family that was not musically inclined. However, at her uncle's insistence, she was sent to train under Ustad Imdad Khan, the great sarangi exponent, and later under Ata Mohammed Khan. Later she traveled to Calcutta with her mother and started learning music from classical stalwarts like Mohammad Khan, Abdul Waheed Khan and finally she became the disciple of Ustad Jhande Khan Saheb.

Films Division's Documentary on Begum Akhtar

Her first public peformance was at the tender age of fifteen. She took the music world by storm. The famous poetess Smt. Sarojini Naidu appreciated her singing during a concert which was organised in the aid of victims of Bihar earthquake. This encouraged her to continue singing ghazals with more enthusiasm. She also cut her first disc for the Megaphone Record Company at that time. A number of gramophone records were released carrying her ghazals, dadras, thumris.


Begum Akhtar - Very Old Ghazal

With the advent of talkie era in India, Begum Akhtar acted in a few Hindi movies in thirties. East India Film Company of Calcutta approached her to act in Mumtaz Beghum (1934), Jawaani Ka Nasha(1935), Naseeb Ka Chakkar (1935) including King for a Day (1933, director : Raaj Hans). Like others of that era, she sang her songs herself in all her films. She continued acting in the following years.
Subsequently Begum Akhtar moved back to Lucknow where she was approached by the famous producer-director Mehboob Khan, as a result of which she acted in ROTI which was released in 1942 and whose music was composed by maestro Anil Biswas. Begum Akhtar later left Bombay and returned to Lucknow. In 1945, Begum AKhtar was married to barrister Ishtiaq Ahmed Abbasi and became known as Begum Akhtar. However, after marriage, due to her husband's restrictions, she could not sing almost 5 years, and subsequently, she fell ill. Music was prescribed as the only remedy! In 1949, she returned to the recording studios.

Aye Mohabbat Tere Anjam Pe Rona Aaya - Begum Akhtar
 

Her performances moved female singers out from the shadow of kothas, royal palaces and onto the stage with the attending aura of respectability! A Padma Shri, followed by a Sangeet Natak Academy Award, and a posthumous Padma Bhushan are not really needed to appreciate the unique voice that resonated with pain. Begum Akhtar sang at numerous mushairas and concerts and left behind a discography of close to four hundred songs, mostly classical numbers that she herself composed. Her voice matured with time, adding richness and depth. She sang ghazals and other light classical pieces, singing them in her inimitable style. She has nearly four hundred songs to her credit. She was a regular performer on All India Radio. She usually composed her own ghazals and most of her compositions were raag based.
During her last concert which was held in Ahmedabad, she had raised the pitch of her voice as she felt that her singing that day had not been as good as she had wanted it to be. She had not been feeling well that day to begin with. The additional demand and stress she put herself under resulted in her falling ill and being rushed to the hospital. She passed away on 30th of October, 1974 leaving a big void in ghazal lovers' hearts.
Just eight days before her death, she recorded Kaifi Azmi's ghazal:  
sunaa karo merii jaan un se un ke afsaane
sab ajanabii hai.n yahaa.N kaun kis ko pahachaane
Today her name is almost synonymous with the concept of ghazal gayaki, and her imitable style of singing which immortalized her, and gave her the title of Mallika-e-Ghazal (Queen of Ghazals).

Ghazal By Akhtari Bai Faizabadi (Begum Akhtar)

No one had a voice like hers, full of dard that welled up from her life experiences! 
(Posted on October 8, 2010 by Pardesi):
In a biography of Begum Akhtar, Rita Ganguly and Jyoti Sabharwal tell us of how her father abandoned her, her mother and twin sister, a parting that led to a constant search for approval from her father, and one that she never ever got. At the age of 4 the siblings were poisoned and Begum Akhtar survived but her sister died, and a second parting left an indelible mark of sorrow on Akhtari Bai’s soul. A series of abusive relationships began with her first guru – a respected name in Indian Classical music, and was followed by an assault by a known royal patron of music from Bihar. At age 13 she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter whom she could never acknowledge as her child and always called her a sister! These traumas shaped a life full of melancholy that was channeled into the most divine music.
After marriage to a respectable lawyer, she was told to stop singing, until poor health led to a prescription that she be allowed to sing to heal. Somewhere along the line she had 7 abortions, and a bout with cocaine addiction, and eventually died of a heart attack after a concert at Ahmedabad – at the age of 60 years!
(Source: http://pakhipakhi.wordpress.com/2010/10/08/ae-mohabbat-tere-anjaam-pe-rona-aaya-mallika-e-ghazal-begum-akhtar/)


Akhtari Bai Faizabadi - Begum Akhtar sings a Qaseeda for H.H. Osman Ali Khan, Nizam of Hyderabad.

"Begum Akhtar: Love’s own voice" 

By S. Kalidas - Roli Books, Rs 495, 84 pp.
(http://www.rolibooks.com/lustre/biography1/-/begum-akhtar-loves-own-voice/)The Begum still casts a spell. The last from the great female singers of the tawaif (courtesan) community, Begum Akhtar, born Akhtari Bai Faizabadi, possessed a voice that intoxicated millions and exuded a charm that seduced nawabs and royalty. Journalist and musicologist S. Kalidas’ book Begum Akhtar: Love’s Own Voice, strings together an account of Akhtari’s life from her birth in 1914 to her becoming the defining name in ghazal, dadra and thumri singing.... (Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/supplementary/sunday-chronicle/begum%E2%80%99s-magic-374)