Budhaditya Mukherjee (Sitar) - Instrumental Music of India - LP published in 1982 in the Soviet Union.

A beautiful LP by Budhaditya Mukherjee recorded 1979 in the Soviet Union

and published there as an LP in 1982.

Side 1:

Raga Puria Kalyan

Side 2:

1. Raga Basant Mukhari

2. Tabla Solo in Tintal

Download wave
Download mp3

Manzoor Ahmad Khan Niazi Qawwal (1922-2013) and Party - Ya Badee Ul Jamal - EMCPM-5021 (1976) - EMI Pakistan

Ustad Manzoor Ahmad Khan Niazi 

has passed away on April 9, 2013. 

See: http://lalioutloud.blogspot.de/2013/04/on-manzoor-niazi-sbs-passing.html

About the artist: http://www.qawwalniazi.com/index.html/#!?page_id=25

We had posted already in June 2011 this beautiful LP:

Side 1:

1. Marhaba Ya Noor al-Aeni (12:49)

2. Ya Badee Ul Jamal (11:34)

Side 2:

Allah Ho Allah Ho (23:37)

Download

Another great master of Vichitra Veena: Ustad Ahmed Raza Khan

Ustad Ahmed Raza Khan, from the same generation as most of the masters we posted before, and who past away in the early 1990s, was a direct disciple of Ustad Abdul Aziz Khan. His tradition is continued today by his son Dr. Mustafa Raza Khan.

In 1990 the German label Nataraj Music, which no longer exists, published a beautiful CD by the Ustad:

The CD can be obtained here: 

http://www.discogs.com/Ahmed-Raza-Khan-The-Vichitra-Veena/release/4281052

There also can be obtained a CD by his son: 

http://www.discogs.com/Dr-Mustafa-Raza-La-Tradition-Du-Khyal-A-La-Vichitravina-Patiala-Gharana/release/4280123

More about the artist: 

http://www.vichiterveena.com/artist.htm

Late Ustad Ahmed Raza Khan Saheb

Beenkar (Patiala & Muradabad Gharana)

Masters of Vichitra Veena - Part III - Ramesh Prem

The third and last master of the Vichitra Veena we present here is the unfortunately very neglected Pandit Ramesh Prem. Recently there was announced a CD by him in the series "Rare Instruments" from ASA Music, but apparently never got published. Here we present an EP published in 1967 and a radio program broadcast on All India Radio in 2000.

Download

Many thanks to KF, who put these recordings from his collection together and made a nice CD out of them.

Saying bye to Vichitra Veena 

By Vandana Shukla

It will pain the already agonised hearts of the culturally-conscious that in a country of 90 crore people there are no takers for one of the oldest instruments of the Indian classical tradition — the Vichitra Veena. Of the total number of three Veena players in the whole of northern India, only two survive, both now in the dusk of their lives, witnessing an almost certain extinction of their beloved instrument. Pandit Lal Mani Mishra from BHU died fighting for the cause of the survival of this instrument to get a few students sponsored by the government or some private agency. His son, Gopal Mishra, has been running from pillar to post for many years in vain. Now, it is only Shri Gopal Krishan in Delhi who plays the Veena, sometimes for the AIR and Doordarshan. Ramesh Prem, who hails from Ferozepore, is now settled in Bombay is the other player. He says that in a country where honours come only posthumously, it is futile to expect any kind of recognition for such a non-glamorous effort. The system recognises only a chosen few, who are given awards after awards, even though they have not made any original contribution to the art. Even the media follows the beaten track and people working quietly in small corners remain marginalised.

This, in essence, is the tale of this highly gifted couple who have been fighting to protect the last bastions of a crumbling citadel of traditional music. Ramesh and Geeta Prem are both gifted artistes. He plays the Veena and she sings melodies in the evening of their life. They do not nurture any hopes for the revival of this instrument anymore. At the same time, they say, they have stopped being bitter about the apathy of the system. They have quietly chosen their individual diversions — Geeta feeds and looks after stray dogs on the streets of Bombay and is popularly known as Kutton wali auntie, while Ramesh composes hymns in praise of his guru, Shri Paramhansa Yogananda. His compositions have a deep serenity expressed in the simple language of the heart, like a soothing balm for the troubled heart.

A devotee of Yogoda Satsang Society of India, he travelled from Bombay to Chandigarh to pay his obeisance by playing his Veena on the 47th mahasamadhi day of his beloved guru, whose blessings, he says, have freed him of his agonies. So, if other mortals have not embraced his instrument, it’s fine with him. He knows his master has accepted his music and this very thought gives him peace and solace. With the blessings of the guru there is more music in his life than it was ever before, he says.

Ramesh’s love for music began as a forced diversion. His father, an eminent lawyer who was writing a few books on law, found his noisy children a nuisance. To keep them busy, he arranged for a music teacher and Pandit Shruit Ratan started giving lessons in vocal music to Ramesh and his sister. Ramesh learnt his lessons faster than expected and developed a discerning ear for the intricacies of ragas and different talas, so, in the annual summer sojourns to Nainital, which was a regular feature, a tabla teacher was arranged for him at Nainital. Having learnt tabla, he started playing the sitar and continued playing it for many years.

Then, he listened to Ustad Abdul Aziz Khan, the court musician of Maharaja Patiala, playing the Veena on Lahore radio station. The sound of Veena with its deep resonance pulled him to this instrument like a magnet. He knew this is what he had been wanting to play all the while. He would listen to all the programmes of the ustad, which were quite frequent those days, religiously for about five to six years. It goes to the credit of Ustad Abdul Aziz Khan that Veena was revived in these modern times. Otherwise, it would have died long back. Ramesh moved to Lahore and decided to learn under the tutelage of the ustad. After five years of futile chase for the ustad, Ramesh realised he had to look for some other teacher. At the same time, he did not want to compromise on the choice of his instrument. When he met Mohammed Sharif Khan Poonchwale, son of Khan Sahib Rahim Khan, the court musician of the Maharaja of Kashmir, the ustad told him to pursue sitar, since he found his baaj good on the instrument. But at his insistence, he agreed to teach him playing the Veena. Ramesh learnt playing the Veena in gayaki ang. It was at his insistence that his ustad taught him the meend style of playing theVeena. Then came Partition and he had to leave Lahore, but he brought along his love for Veena.

The desire for further refinement of his art took him to Abdul Walid Khan Kiranewale, who was his sister’s ustad in vocal music. The aesthetic ease and serenity of the Kirana appealed to him, and through his single-minded devotion he learnt playing the Veena in the gayaki ang of the Kirana Gharana. Jawahar Lal Mattoo, another illustrious disciple of Ustad Walid Khan, taught him the intricacies of Layakari, the most difficult and rare patterns of rhythm, like Aad, Kawad, Khand, Rupak, Tipalli, which are often not used by popular performers as they are difficult to master. The audiences also fail to recognise and appreciate the intricacies of traditional gatkari. What they recognise is only faster beats in the Dogun and Chargun style etc. It is for the wizards to enter the arena of intricate gatkari. Prem’s creative mind, not satisfied by mastering the tradition alone, made many innovations in the instrument itself to attain a wider canvas for his musical inspirations.

It takes 10 to 15 years’ single-minded devotion to get familiar with this instrument. Mastery over the instrument takes even longer.

A world ailing with short-sightedness fails to recognise the depth of serenity as well as pitfalls. So, when the winds of change blow, they also remove what is precious and preservable. It is to the credit of the Prems that they have been holding on to this tradition against all odds. Despite policy consolations of Prasar Bharati, there is no system of royalty being offered either by AIR or Doordarshan. Refinement of art often leads to refinement of temperament. Prems feel incapable of making the rounds of the corridors of power for personal gains.

Perhaps, the next generations will get to see this aesthetically designed instrument only through the glass panes in a museum, devoid of its deep resonance, since it is only the touch of deft human hands that makes it reverberate with music. 

from: http://www.tribuneindia.com/1999/99apr25/sunday/head6.htm

Masters of Vichitra Veena - Part II - Gopal Shankar Mishra (1957-1999)

Here some recordings by Gopal Shankar Mishra, the worthy son of Lalmani Mishra. Gopal Shankar Mishra was a master of the Sitar and the Vichitra Veena. Recordings done at the Benares Dhrupad Mela in 1995 and 1999.

Download CD 1 & Scans
Download CD 2

Recordings courtesy of VN,  CD compilation and covers by KF.

Many thanks to both. 

About the artist:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopal_Shankar_Misra

Masters of Vichitra Veena - Part I - Gopal Krishan (1926-?) - Some AIR recordings

In the past we had already posted a couple of recordings by some masters of the Vichitra Veena, an extremely rare instrument of classical North Indian music. First we had posted a cassette by Lal Mani Mishra (1924-1979) (see here). Then we had a beautiful LP from Pakistan by Habib Ali Khan Beenkar (1898-1971), the younger brother of Abdul Aziz Khan Beenkar, the inventor or re-inventor of the Vichitra Veena (see here), and finally we had another beautiful Vichitra Veena LP, again from Pakistan, by the legendary Sitar player Mohammed Sharif Khan Poonchhwala (1923-1980) (see here) who learned to play the Vichitra Veena also from Abdul Aziz Khan. 

As there are only very few recordings of Vichtra Veena masters available and it is such a beautiful instrument we will post here some concert recordings and radio programs by two great masters of the instrument from India. We start here with Gopal Krishan (1926-?). The recordings are from All India Radio.

Download CD 1 & Scans

Download CD 2

Recordings courtesy of VN,  CD compilation and covers by KF.

Many thanks to both. 

See on the musician: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopal_Krishan

Alim Gasymov (Qasimov) - Destgah - Azerbaijan Mugams 1 - LP Melodiya C30 24023 006 (1985)

Here one of the earliest recordings by Alim Qasimov. 

See also our post "Azerbaijan - Zerbi-Mugams and Shikeste".

LP first published 1985/1986. This edition is from 1990.

Alim Gasymov - Vocal

Bahram Mansurov - Tar

Talyat Bakikhanov - Kyamancha (Kemenche)

Vartan Avetisov - Daf

Side 1: 

Mahur-Hindi (17:51)

Side 2:

Shur (23:11)

Download

New Download Links

For most posts we created now new download links on Mediafire. Hope this will help. The remaining part will be done in the next couple of days. There are some recordings on this blog which are available now on CD or exist as commercial downloads on download platforms like Amazon. We deleted the download links for these. Mediafire also considers some of our posts as being protected by copyright and denies download. These I also have deleted. You have to try to download these from Rapidshare. Hopefully with new Mediafire links existing now for almost all posts the number of visitors trying to download from Rapidshare will decrease greatly and make downloads easier available again.

Ustad Aslam Khan - Parampara (Tradition) - Cassette published in India in 1989

Here another beautiful cassette by Ustad Aslam Khan. 

Bosmart posted quite a while ago on his blog another beautiful cassette 

by him from the same year. There is now a new download link for it at: 

http://lalogiqueinterne.blogspot.fr/2010_11_01_archive.html

Side A:

Raga Manjari Bihag (29:29)

Side B:

Raga Kamodi Malhar (29:41)

Download

Many thanks again to Ambrose Bierce for sharing this cassette.

Aslam Khan - Darbari, Todi, Sohni - Cassette from India

Ustad Aslam Khan is one of the most interesting and refined singers of recent decades. He comes from a musically extremely rich background (see below), which is very manfest in his singing. We had already posted some recordings by one of his teachers, his uncle the legendary Altaf Hussain Khan (see here).

Download

Thanks to Ambrose Bierce for sharing this cassette.

Ustad Aslam Hussain Khan (A Living Legend)

Introduction Ustad Aslam Khan is one of the top and most senior musicians at present.     Ustad Aslam Hussain Khan has descended from the Hapur Gharana  (Meerut U.P.) of Shaadi Khan and Murad Khan whose achievements sound legendary. Ustad Shaadi Khan and Ustad Murad Khan were the court musicians of the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar. Ustad Aslam Khan, has completed 50 years of dedicated service to Indian music this year, and on this occasion, his disciples, students and fans congratulate him for this great achievement. Born on 14th April 1940.  "Music runs in my blood" as he replies during an interview. Ustad Aslam Khan, is the representative of 500 year old traditional Musician's family of the prestigious Khurja Gharana, Atrauli (Jaipur) Gharana, Agra Gharanas and the Delhi Tanras Khan Gharana. These Gharanas have given India such giants as Haji Ustad Altaf Hussain Khan, Gayan Samrat Ustad Azmat Hussain Khan, Sangeet Samrat Ustad Allahdiya Khan, Gayan Acharya Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan, Aaftab-e-Mausiqui Ustad Fayyaz Khan and many others. The contribution of these music stalwarts, to the enrichment, promotion and popularity of Indian Music is monumental. "I was initially trained in music by my maternal uncle Haji Ustad Altaf Hussain Khan of Khurja Gharana." "Later around 1950, I came to Bombay permanently, to stay with my brother-in-law, Gayan Samrat Ustad Azmat Hussain Khan, who not only became my Guru but also mentor and benefactor". "My Guru Ustad Azmat Hussain Khan, belonged to the Atrauli (Jaipur) Gharana, and was one of the greatest musicians India has ever produced". "He was a performer, musicologist, poet as well as a perfect teacher". "He not only taught me music but also urdu and Arabic". "I owe most of what I am today, as a musician and as a social being to my Guru". "I also had a golden opportunity of learning music under the great Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan of Agra Gharana, and also Ustad Khadim Hussain Khan." Aslam Khan was a child prodigy who gave his first stage performance at the age of twelve years. He is a khandani Musician belonging to the near extinct world of "Guru Shishya Parampara". This gem of purest ray serene, happily vegetates, in the dark unfathomed caves of sincere dedication and unalloyed devotion to music, blissfully unmindful of the honours like Padmabhushan, Sangeet Natak Academy Awards, Cultural Awards or Gaurav Puraskars, that should have come his way long ago but have not. Ustad Aslam Khan's inborn genius enabled him to blend the diverse speciality of each respective Gharana into an individual style which has tremendous aesthetic appeal, his khayal singing is marked by a leisurely development (badath) of the "Vilambit" while the "Drut" is embellished by a spectacular variation of "Layakari" and breath takingly "tayyar taans". Aslam Khan has recorded not less than four hundred bandishes (compositions) in rare ragas with the ITC SRA, SAPTAK (Ahmedabad), SNA (New Delhi), AIR (Mumbai & Delhi), Goa Academy Samvad foundation & NCPA Mumbai. He has recorded 300 rare ragas with SRA and fifty Ragas with Saptak. In recent times Aslam Khan Sahab has been declared as one of the greatest exponents of khayal gayaki & the senior most representative of the legendary Khurja, Atrauli (Jaipur) & Agra Gharanas. from: http://www.dilrangacademy.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7&Itemid=15

Zerrouk Mokdad - Musique Classique Algérienne - Cassette published in France

Here a cassette I bought in the early 1980s in Paris.

Arabo-Andalusian music from Algeria, the tradition of Algiers called Sana'a.

Another recording by Zerrouk Mokdad you can find here.

Side A: 

Nouba Ghrib - part 1 (23:56)

Side B:

Nouba Ghrib - part 2 (24:21)

Download

"HOMMAGE À ZERROUK MOKDAD

20/07/2008
La musique l’a bercé depuis son enfance jusqu’à le subjuguer à jamais.

La salle Aïssa Messaoudi de la Radio nationale a frémi, durant toute la soirée de mercredi, au rythme de la musique arabo-andalouse et du châabi à l’occasion d’un hommage rendu par la Radio nationale et retransmis en direct sur les ondes de la Chaîne 1, à Zerrouk Mokdad, le digne héritier de Dahmane Benachour et de Abdelkrim Dali. Référence par excellence dans ce genre musical. Soliste de l’Ensemble national, chef de l’orchestre de la Radio et dirigeant de l’Orchestre national de chaâbi. La soirée, à laquelle ont assisté, notamment de nombreux invités, des membres de la famille de l’artiste ainsi que ses amis de parcours, en l’occurrence Cheikh Nordine et Si Mustapha El Bahar. Issu d’une famille où l’éclat des hauts faits s’exprimait par son attachement aux valeurs traditionnelles, Zerrouk Mokdad, non sans inclination pour les décorums ancestraux, va lui-même perpétuer, car investi de la noble mission de promouvoir l’immense héritage de la musique arabo-andalouse, un art qui l’a bercé depuis son enfance jusqu’à le subjuguer à jamais. Référence incontournable dans la lignée des grands maîtres de la musique andalouse, Cheikh Zerrouk Mokdad est né à Blida dans une famille de mélomanes avertis. Il s’est imprégné, dès son jeune âge, des rudiments de la musique çanaâ et chaâbie. L’année 1964 marquera le début d’une longue carrière florissante par son inscription au conservatoire d’Alger dans la classe du regretté Abdelkrim Dali. Quelques mois plus tard, le jeune prodige au talent sûr adhère à l’association El-Djazaïria El-Mossilia côtoyant ainsi des personnages charismatiques de cette musique tels Abdelkrim Mehamsadji, Mohamed Bensemman, Zoubir Kakachi, Aziouz Hammachi, Omar Bensemman et Hamidou Djaïdir. Sa maîtrise du répertoire et de l’alto lui ouvre, en 1968, les portes de l’orchestre de la RTA dirigé par l’érudit Abderezzak Fakhardji qui vit en lui la relève sûre et légitime. La soif inextinguible de savoir et de connaissance l’amène à nouer, dès 1972, une relation de quasi filiation avec le maître du genre en la personne de Si Mustapha Bahar. Il sera nommé chef d’orchestre à la Radio algérienne en 1992 et ce, jusqu’à 2006, après dix-sept ans de contributions fécondes aux côtés de l’illustre Mustapha Skandrani. En 2003, le maître est nommé chef d’orchestre de l’ensemble régional de musique andalouse d’Alger avec lequel il effectuera plusieurs tournées régionales à l’instar de celles entreprises à la tête de l’ensemble national de chaâbi dont il assure la direction en succession au regretté Hadj Hachemi Guerrouabi. Cet inlassable travail de sauvegarde et vulgarisation de ce pan du patrimoine culturel national, Cheikh Zerrouk Mokdad le réalise à ce jour dans la plus parfaite des modesties. La soirée a débuté par l’orchestre national de musique, sous la direction de Abdelkader Razk Allah, qui a gratifié l’assistance d’une touchia dans le mode sika.Le chanteur Rachid Khali a subjugué le public, il a assuré en plus de sa voix rauque, une très belle interprétation, en imitant le grand maître, le défunt Hadj El Hachemi Guerrouabi, à l’occasion de la deuxième année de sa disparition à l’âge de 68 ans. Comme souvent dans ses chansons, l’artiste raconte des histoires, il nous monte des scénarios tragi-comiques. Rachid nous a proposé un bouquet de trois titres, de beaux textes de notre intarissable patrimoine culturel, mais aussi avec toute la finesse d’un parler très kasbadji, avec un mode musical lié à une sorte de nostalgie et de tristesse, mais associé à un ensemble d’expressions plus complexes qui varient considérablement selon la couleur, l’ambiance ou l’état d’esprit. Il termine, bien sûr, avec une certaine énergie, de la joie et de l’allégresse. Une manière de gratifier les deux maîtres.L’ambiance nostalgique s’est poursuivie avec Didine Karroum, ainsi avec l’invité d’honneur, qui n’est autre que Zerrouk Mokdad, installé en maître au milieu de l’orchestre avec son mandole pour offrir aux passionnés de cette musique populaire des extraits des grands chefs-d’oeuvre tirés des immortelles quassidate. Cette rencontre s’est terminée en beauté, avec la surprise, qui fut l’apparition sur scène de sa fille Kenza, qui veut suivre le chemin de son père et dont l’héritage du timbre de la voix et de la méthode d’interprétation demeurent confirmés. En marge de cet hommage, une pieuse pensée a été rendue à tous les artistes qui ont contribué à représenter dignement notre pays."

from: http://www.vitaminedz.com/hommage-a-zerrouk-mokdad/Articles_15688_109048_9_1.html

Ustad Doray Logari - Vol. 1 - Cassette from Afghanistan

Ostad Doray Logari is considered to be the father of Logari music. I guess that this means that he popularized this music in the middle of last century through his performances broadcast by Afghan radio and television. The famous Bilton, of whom we had posted earlier two cassettes (see here and here), is his best student. Logari music became through Ostad Doray Logari's performances very popular all over Afghanistan and is often considered the most typical Afghan music.

Logar (great mountain) is a province, mostly inhabited by Pashtuns and Tajiks, southeast of Kabul. 

Side 1 (30:17)

Side 2 (30:08)

Download