A raga (Sanskrit rāga राग, Tamil rāgam ராகம், Kannada "Raaga" ರಾಗ, Malayalam rāgam രാഗം literally "colour, hue" but also "beauty, melody"; also spelled raag, raaga, ragam)^[1] is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.

A raga uses a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is constructed. However, it is important to remember that the way the notes are approached and rendered in musical phrases and the mood they convey are more important in defining a raga than the notes themselves. In the Indian musical tradition, rāgas are associated with different times of the day, or with seasons. Indian classical music is always set in a rāga. Non-classical music such as popular Indian film songs and ghazals sometimes use rāgas in their compositions.

Joep Bor of the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music defined Raga as "tonal framework for composition and improvisation."^[2] Nazir Jairazbhoy, chairman of UCLA's department of ethnomusicology, characterized ragas as separated by scale, line of ascent and descent, transilience, emphasized notes and register, and intonation and ornaments.^[3]

Terminology[link]

Look up राग in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Look up raga in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The Sanskrit word rāga is defined as 'the act of colouring or dyeing' (the mind and mood/emotions in this context) and therefore metaphorically means 'any feeling or passion especially love, affection, sympathy, desire, interest, motivation, joy, or delight.' Therefore, the word is used in the literal sense of 'the act of dyeing,' and also 'color, hue, tint,' especially the color red in the Sanskrit epics, and in the figurative sense of 'something that colors one's emotions.' A figurative sense of the word as 'passion, love, desire, delight' is also found in the Mahabharata. The specialized sense of 'loveliness, beauty,' especially of voice or song, emerges in Classical Sanskrit, used by Kalidasa and in the Panchatantra.^[4]

The term first occurs in a technical context in the Brihaddeshi (dated ca. 5th to 8th century),^[5] where it is described as "a combination of tones which, with beautiful illuminating graces, pleases the people in general".

Rāginī (Devanagari: रागिनी) is a term for the "feminine" counterpart or "wife" to a rāga. The rāga-rāgini scheme from about the 14th century aligned 6 "male" rāgas with 6 "wives."

Nature of rāga[link]

Raga Shree recital to Krishna and Radha, Ragamala paintings, 19th century

योऽसौ ध्वनिविशेषस्तु स्वरवर्णविभूषितः ।

रञ्जको जनचित्तानां स च राग उदाहृतः ।।

"That which is a special dhwani (tune), is bedecked with swara (notes) and varna and is colorful or delightful to the minds of the people, is said to be rāga" - Matanga in the Brihaddeshi.

The basic mode of reference in modern Hindustani practice (known commonly as the shuddha - basic - form) is a set which is equivalent to the Western Ionian mode (the major scale) — this is called Bilawal thaat in Hindustani music (the Carnatic analogue would be Sankarabharanam). In both systems, the ground (or tonic), Shadja, Sa, and a pure fifth above, Pancham, Pa, are fixed and essentially sacrosanct tones. In the Hindustani system, in a given seven-tone mode, the second, third, sixth, and seventh notes can be natural (shuddha, lit. 'pure') or flat (komal, 'soft') but never sharp, and the fourth note can be natural or sharp (tivra) but never flat, making up the twelve notes in the Western equal tempered chromatic scale (Western enharmonic pitch equivalences like, for example, A♯ and B♭ do not apply; e.g. Re tivra may, to a Western musician appear enharmonic to Ga shuddha in that system, but in practice is not.) A Western-style C chromatic scale could therefore theoretically have the notes C, D♭, D, E♭, E, F, F♯, G, A♭, A, B♭, B.

The Carnatic system has three versions — a lower, medium, and higher form — of all the notes except Sa, Ma and Pa. Ma has two versions (lower and higher), while Sa and Pa are invariant. Rāgas can also specify microtonal changes to this scale: a flatter second, a sharper seventh, and so forth. Tradition has it that the octave consists of (a division into) 22 microtones ("shrutis"). Furthermore, individual performers treat pitches quite differently, and the precise intonation of a given note depends on melodic context. There is no absolute pitch (such as the modern western standard A = 440 Hz); instead, each performance simply picks a ground note, which also serves as the drone, and the other scale degrees follow relative to the ground note. The Carnatic system embarks from a much different shuddha (fundamental) scalar formation, that is, shuddha here is the lowest-pitched swara.

By comparison, using the common tonic "C" for a western musician:

Rāgas and their seasons[link]

Vasant Ragini, Ragamala, Rajput, Kota, Rajasthan. 1770. Vasant is the raga of spring. The painting depicts Hindu god Krishna dancing with maidens.

Many Hindustani (North Indian) rāgas are prescribed for the particular time of a day or a season. When performed at the suggested time, the rāga has its maximum effect. For example, many of the Malhar group of rāgas, which are ascribed the magical power to bring rain, are performed during the monsoon. However, these prescriptions are not strictly followed, especially since modern concerts are generally held in the evening. There has also been a growing tendency over the last century for North Indian musicians to adopt South Indian rāgas, which do not come with any particular time associated with them. The result of these various influences is that there is increasing flexibility as to when rāgas may be performed.

Notations[link]

Although notes are an important part of rāga practice, they alone do not make the rāga. A rāga is more than a scale, and many rāgas share the same scale. The underlying scale may have five, six or seven tones made up of swaras. Rāgas that have five swaras are called audava (औडव) rāgas; those with six, shaadava (षाडव); and with seven, sampurna (संपूर्ण, Sanskrit for 'complete'). Those rāgas that do not follow the strict ascending or descending order of swaras are called vakra (वक्र) ('crooked') rāgas.

The mood of the rāga and the way the notes are approached and used are more important than the notes it uses. For example, Darbari Kanada and Jaunpuri share the same notes but are entirely different in their renderings. Similarly, although Bilaskhani Todi is classified under the Bhairavi thaat because of the notes it uses, it is actually closer to Todi than to Bhairavi.

Northern and southern differences[link]

The two streams of Indian classical music, Carnatic music and Hindustani music, have independent sets of rāgas. There is some overlap, but more "false friendship" (where rāga names overlap, but rāga form does not). In north India, the rāgas have been categorised into ten thaats or parent scales (by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, 1860-1936); South India uses an older, more systematic classification scheme called the melakarta classification, with 72 parent (melakarta) rāgas. Overall there is a greater identification of rāga with scale in the south than in the north, where such an identification is impossible. Rāgas in north Indian music system follow the 'law of consonances' established by Bharata in his Natyashastra, which does not tolerate deviation even at the shruti level.

As rāgas were transmitted orally from teacher to student, some rāgas can vary greatly across regions, traditions and styles. Many ragas have also been evolving over the centuries. There have been efforts to codify and standardise rāga performance in theory from their first mention in Matanga's Brihaddeshi (c. tenth century).

Carnatic rāga[link]

In Carnatic music, rāgas are classified as Janaka rāgas and Janya rāgas. Janaka rāgas are the rāgas from which the Janya rāgas are created. Janaka rāgas are grouped together using a scheme called Katapayadi sutra and are organised as Melakarta rāgas. A Melakarta rāga is one which has all seven notes in both the ārōhanam (ascending scale) and avarōhanam (descending scale). Some Melakarta rāgas are Harikambhoji, Kalyani, Kharaharapriya, Mayamalavagowla, Sankarabharanam and Todi.

Janya rāgas are derived from the Janaka rāgas using a combination of the swarams (usually a subset of swarams) from the parent rāga. Some janya rāgas are Abheri, Abhogi, Bhairavi, Hindolam, Mohanam and Kambhoji. See the full List of Janya Ragas for more.

Each rāga has a definite collection and orders of swaras (the basic notes). In Carnatic music, there are 7 basic notes of which there are a total of 16 varieties. The seven basic swarams of Carnatic music are: Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ni.

Related rāgas[link]

Even though Janya rāgas are subsets of Janaka rāgas in notation and representation, the differences between the child ragas are clear due to the differences like

• some notes that figure more in a particular rāga compared to another, while other notes used sparingly
• some notes may be sung with gamaka, stress, elongation, etc., in one rāga compared to other
• specific phrases used and other phrases to be avoided in a rāga (so as to avoid deviation into another rāga's domain)
• the scales of some ragas may contain at least one swara that does not figure in their janaka ragas. Such ragas are termed as bhashanga ragas. Ragas such as Bhairavi, Kambhoji, Bilahari, Devagandhari, and Neelambari fall under this category.
• An important fact to be noted is to never sing Bhairavi and Kharaharapriya together, since, the prayogas while singing aalapana are almost the same, with the Suddha dha of Bhairavi being the only difference between the two.

The effect of the rāgas are different from each other, even if they notationally use same swarams (or subset of swarams between each other) due to above subjective differences related to bhava and rasa (mood caused in the listener). The artists have to ensure the same when elaborating on a rāga, as has been followed and expected on each rāga, without digressing into the phrases of another related rāga.

Rāga-rāgini[link]

Basohli painting of Ragaputra Velavala, son of the raga Bhairava.

The rāga-rāgini scheme is a classification scheme used from the 14th century to the 19th century. It usually consists of 6 'male' rāgas each with 6 'wives' (rāginis) and a number of sons (putras) and even 'daughters-in-law'. As it did not agree with various other schemes, and the 'related' rāgas had very little or no similarity, the rāga-rāgini scheme is no longer very popular.^[6]

Rāgas and rāginis were often pictured as Hindu gods, Rajput princes and aristocratic women in an eternal cycle of love, longing and fulfilment.^[6]

See also[link]

Indian classical music portal

• Arabic maqam
• Echos
• List of rāgas
• Makam
• Melody type
• Muqam
• Nava rasas
• Rāga, a documentary about the life and music of Ravi Shankar
• Raga rock

References[link]

Literature[link]

• Bhatkhande, Vishnu Narayan (1968-73), Kramika Pustaka Malika, Hathras: Sangeet Karyalaya .
• Bor, Joep (1999), The Rāga Guide, Charlottesville,Virginia: Nimbus Records 
• Daniélou, Alain (1949), Northern Indian Music, Calcutta: Visva Bharati 
• Jairazbhoy, N.A. (1995), The Rags of North Indian Music: Their Structure & Evolution, Bombay: Popular Prakashan 
• Kaufmann, Walter (1968), The Ragas of North India, Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Company 

• Moutal, Patrick (1991), Hindustani Raga Index 

• Moutal, Patrick (1991), A Comparative Study of Selected Hindustani Ragas 

Some Ragamala paintings can be found in:

• Bautze, J (1987), Indian Miniature Paintings c:1590 to c. 1850, Amsterdam: Galerie Saundarya Lahari, ISBN 90-72085-01-9 
• Gangoly, O.C. (1934), Rāgas and Rāginis, Calcutta 

• • Ragas and raginis by Amiyanath Sanyal (English) ORIENT LONGMANS 1959 printed by S.C.Ghosh, Calcutta Press, Wellington Squate, Calcutta (Link: www.dli.ernet.in)
  • Sangita Ratnakara of Sarangadeva (Raga Adyaya) ( -do- )

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Raga

• A step-by-step introduction to the concept of raga for beginners
• Rajan Parrikar Music Archive - detailed analyses of ragas backed by rare audio recordings
• Comprehensive reference on raagas
• Krsna Kirtana Songs Ragamala — an informative database with over ninety rāgas (audio clips coming soon), tutorial on the North Indian notation system, rāga classification, and explanation of how rāgas work.
• Hindustani Raga Sangeet Online A rare collection of audio & video archives from 1902. Radio programs dedicated to famous ragas.
• Online quick reference of rāgams in Carnatic music.
• Basics of Hindustani Classical Music for Listeners: a downloadable PDF, and an online video talk. Includes "What is a Raga"?

v t e Hindustani Classical Music Concepts Swara · Tala · Laya · Raag · Shruti · Bandish · Alankar · Riyaz · Gharana Instruments Sitar · Sarod · Veena · Bansuri · Santoor · Shehnai · Harmonium · Sarangi · Tanpura · Tabla · Violin · Pakhawaj Genres Dhrupad · Dhamar · Khyal · Tarana · Sadra Semi-Classical Genres Thumri · Dadra · Tappa · Kajri · Chaiti · Sawani · Hori · Bhajan · Abhang · Natyageet · Qawwali · Ghazal Thaats Bilawal · Khamaj · Kafi · Asavari · Bhairav · Bhairavi · Todi · Purvi · Marwa · Kalyan

Hariprasad Chaurasia
Hariprasad Chaurasia at Bhubaneswar, Orissa
Background information
Born	(1938-07-01) 1 July 1938 (age 73)
Origin	Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
Genres	Hindustani classical music
Occupations	Composer, flute player
Instruments	bansuri
Website	hariprasadchaurasia.com

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia (born 1 July 1938) is an Indian classical instrumentalist.^[1] He is a player of the bansuri, the Indian bamboo flute.

Early life[link]

Hariprasad Chaurasia was born in Allahabad in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.^[2] His father was a wrestler. His mother died when he was 6. He had to learn music without his father's knowledge, for his father wanted him to become a wrestler. He did go to the Akhada and train with his father for some time, although he also started learning music, and practising at his friend's house. He often credits his wrestling training for giving him the immense stamina and lung power that are the hallmarks of his flute playing, stating that,

Career[link]

Hariprasad Chaurasia started learning vocal music from his neighbor, Pandit Rajaram at the age of 15. Later, he switched to playing the flute under the tutelage of Pandit Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi for eight years. He joined the All India Radio, Cuttack, Orissa in 1957 and worked as a composer and performer^[3][4][5] Much later, while working for All India Radio he received guidance from the reclusive Annapurna Devi, daughter of Baba Allaudin Khan.

He is considered a rare combination of innovator and traditionalist. He has expanded the expressive possibilities of the bansuri through his masterful blowing technique.

Apart from classical music, he has made a mark as a music director for Indian films along with Pt. Shivkumar Sharma, forming a group called Shiv-Hari. He has also collaborated with various world musicians in experimental cross-cultural performances, including the fusion group Shakti.

He serves as the Artistic Director of the World Music Department at the Rotterdam Music Conservatory in the Netherlands.

He has collaborated with several western musicians, including John McLaughlin and Jan Garbarek, and has also composed music for a number of Indian films. He has performed throughout the world, winning acclaim from varied audiences and fellow musicians including Yehudi Menuhin and Jean-Pierre Rampal.

Personal life[link]

Chaurasia is married to Anuradha, a classical vocalist from Orissa.^[6] They have a son Rajiv.^[7] From his first wife Kamla Chaurasia he has two sons Ajay and Vinay Chaurasia.

Awards[link]

• Sangeet Natak Academy - 1984
• Konark Samman - 1992^[4]
• Padma Bhushan - 1992
• Yash Bharati Sanman - 1994
• Padma Vibhushan - 2000
• Hafiz Ali Khan Award - 2000
• Dinanath Mangeshkar Award - 2000
• Pune Pandit Award - 2008, by The Art & Music Foundation, Pune, India
• National Eminence award, NADA VIDYA BHARTI by Visakha Music and Dance Academy, Vizag - 2009

Honours[link]

• Honoured by Dutch Royal family at Amsterdam,and was conferred with the title Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau (“officier in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau”) and was honoured by Princess Maxima herself.^[8]
• Ministry of Culture of the Republic of France.^[9] He has been appointed as Knight in the Order of Arts and Letter (“Ordres des Arts et Lettres”) in appreciation of the significant contribution he has made to spread culture in France and the rest of the World - 2009
• Honorary Doctorate by the North Orissa University for his unparalleled role and contribution to the world of Indian Classical Music - 2009

Books[link]

• Official biography "Woodwinds of Change" by Surjit Singh - 2008
• 'Hariprasad Chaurasia and the Art of Improvisation', by Henri Tournier^[10]

Discography[link]

These are major albums released by Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, categorized by release dates.²

Chaurasia in 2011

Chaurasia in 2007

With Ustad Zakir Hussain (2012)

1967

• Call of the Valley with Shivkumar Sharma and Brij Bhushan Kabra

1978

• Krishnadhwani 60

1981

• Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute

1984

• Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute (different set of ragas,same album name)

1987

• Morning to Midnight Ragas - Morning Ragas

1988

• Call of the Valley

1989

• Venu
• Live in Ahmedabad '89

1990

• Immortal Series

1991

• Megh Malhar

1992

• Night Ragas
• Live in Amsterdam '92
• Morning to Midnight Ragas - Afternoon Ragas
• All time Favorites
• Live from Sawai Gandharva Music Festival - Video (VHS)
• Raga-s DU Nord Et Du Sud
• Immortal Series - Flute Fantasia

1993

• Indian Classical Masters
• Daylight Ragas
• Flute - Hariprasad Chaurasia

1994

• Thumri - The Music of Love
• In A Mellow Mood
• Possession
• Immortal Series - Devine Drupad
• Classic Greats1 - Ideas on Flute

1995

• In Live Concert
• Cascades of Hindustani Music
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Sunrise Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Morning Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Midday Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Afternoon Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Evening Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Sunset Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Midnight Melody
• Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Late Night Melody
• Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute
• Malhar-Chandrika
• Music 157 - Live in London
• Music - Flute
• Great Jugalbandis
• Music from the world of OSHO - Above & Beyond
• Prem Yog
• Written on the Wind
• Romantic Themes
• Saptarishi - Live at Siri Fort
• The Mystical Flute of Hari Prasad Chaurasia
• Maestro's Choice
• Basant Bahar
• Chaurasia's Choice

1996

• Hari Prasad Chaurasia & his Divine Flute
• Flute Recital
• Valley Recalls - In search of Peace, Love and Harmony
• Krishna's Flute - Master of the Bansuri
• Classical Encounters - A live Experience with Pt. Hari Prasad Chaurasia
• Fabulous Flute
• Pundit Hari Prasad Chaurasia
• In Concert - Vancouver, B.C
• Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute
• The Bamboo Flautist of His Generation
• Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Nada in Jerusalem

1997

• Classical Encounters - A Live Experience with Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia
• Great Jugalbandis
• The Golden Collection (Classical)
• Immortal Essence
• Golden Raga Collection
• Bustan Abraham - Fanar (Guest appearance alongside Zakir Hussain)

1998

• Samarpan-VCD Special 60th Birthday Edition
• The Charms Companion
• Morning to Midnight - Morning to Dusk
• Music for Reiki

1999

• Jugalbandi
• Rasdhaara
• Live Inside Khajuraho
• Live in New Delhi - '89
• Golden Raga Collection
• Musical Titans of India - Jugalbandhi Video (VHS)
• Pure Joy - Positive Energy Music

2000

• Music without Boundaries
• Maaya - Far East
• Hriday - Cuba
• Caravan Spain
• Live Concert at Savai Gandharva Music Festival
• Gurukul - The Guru shishya Parampara

2001

• Adi-Ananth
• Love Divine - Parables of Passion
• Power & Grace - Live at the Saptak Festival 2001
• Discovery of Indian Classical Music
• Flute Duet

2003

• Flute Deity Hariprasad Chaurasia
• The Greatest Hits of Hariprasad Chaurasia
• Salvation - Instrumental Bhajans

Albums (release year unknown)[link]

• La Flute De Pundit Hariprasad Chaurasia
• Hariprasad Chaurasia - The Most Celebrated Flautist of India
• Sound of Silence
• Charm of the Bamboo flute
• Kalpana - Imagination
• A Kaleidoscope of various ragas
• Krishna Utsav
• Kali - Classical Instrumental
• Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - the Living Legend of Flute
• Moon Light Moods - Flute Recital
• Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - The Living Legend of Flute
• Indian Music
• HariDhwani
• Fusion India - Passage of India Series
• Being Still
• Dhammapada - Sacred teaching of Buddha
• The Charms Companion
• Eternity
• Nothing but wind (1988) - Composed by Ilaiyaraaja

With Zakir Hussain

• Making Music (ECM, 1986)

Music for Bollywood films[link]

Along with Pandit Shivkumar Sharma he composed music for

• Chandni
• Darr
• Lamhe
• Silsila
• Faasle
• Vijay
• Sahibaan

Music for Telugu films[link]

The music for the movie Sirivennela is composed by K. V. Mahadevan which revolves around the role of Pandit Hari Prasad, a blind flautist played by Sarvadaman Banerjee and flute renditions by Hariprasad Chaurasia.^[11]

Music for English films[link]

Some of his music is used in Mithaq Kazimi's 16 Days in Afghanistan.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hariprasad Chaurasia

• Official website
• Interview with Choodie Shivaram
• Hariprasad Chaurasia by Mohan Nadkarni
• Interview with The Scholars' Avenue, IIT Kharagpur

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan
Background information
Born	(1922-04-14)April 14, 1922
Origin	Comilla, East Bengal, British India
Died	June 18, 2009(2009-06-18) (aged 87) San Anselmo, California, United States
Genres	Indian classical music
Occupations	Composer, Sarodiya
Instruments	Sarod
Associated acts	Allauddin Khan, Aashish Khan, Ravi Shankar

Ali Akbar Khan (Bengali: আলী আকবর খাঁ) (14 April 1922 – 18 June 2009), often referred to as Khansahib or by the title Ustad (master), was a Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Khan was instrumental in popularizing Indian classical music in the West, both as a performer (often in conjunction with Sitar maestro Ravi Shankar), and as a teacher. He established a music school in Calcutta in 1956, and the Ali Akbar College of Music in 1967, which is now located in San Rafael, California and has a branch in Basel, Switzerland. Khan also composed several classical ragas and filmscores.^[1] He was a Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Music^[2] at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Trained as a musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, Khan first came to America in 1955 on the invitation of violinist Yehudi Menuhin and later settled in California.^[3] Khan was nominated for five Grammy Awards and was accorded India's second highest civilian honor, the Padma Vibhushan, in 1989.^[4] He has also won a MacArthur Fellowship and the National Endowment for the Arts's National Heritage Fellowship.

Childhood and training[link]

Ali Akbar Khan was born in the village of Shibpur, Comilla, in present-day Bangladesh (then East Bengal), to renowned musician and teacher, Allauddin Khan and Madina Begum.^[5] Soon after his birth, Khan's family returned to Maihar (in present day Madhya Pradesh, India) where his father was the primary court musician for the Maharaja of the princely state.^[6]

From an early age Khan received training from his father in various instruments as well as vocal composition, but finally gravitated towards the sarod. Allauddin was a perfectionist and a strict taskmaster, and Khan's lessons started before dawn and often lasted 18 hours a day.^[7] Khan also learned to play the tabla and the pakhavaj from his uncle, Aftabuddin Khan, who he visited at Shibpur.^[8] During this period he met several prominent musicians, such as the sarodist Timir Baran and flutist Pannalal Ghosh, who came to study with his father; in later years he was joined in his lessons by his sister Annapurna Devi, who became an accomplished player of the surbahar, and fellow student Ravi Shankar. Shankar and Annapurna Devi were married in 1941.^[6]

Of his training on the sarod, he wrote:

If you practice for ten years, you may begin to please yourself, after 20 years you may become a performer and please the audience, after 30 years you may please even your guru, but you must practice for many more years before you finally become a true artist—then you may please even God.^[9]

Career[link]

Ali Akbar Khan, after years of rigorous training gave his debut performance at a music conference in Allahabad in 1936, at the age of 13. Three years later, in December 1939, he accompanied Ravi Shankar on the sarod during the latter's debut performance at the same conference; this was the first of many jugalbandis (duets) between the two musicians. In 1938 Khan gave his first recital on All India Radio (AIR), Bombay (accompanied on the tabla by Alla Rakha), and starting in January 1940, he gave monthly performances on AIR, Lucknow. Finally in 1944, both Shankar and Khan left Maihar to start their professional careers as musicians; Shankar went to Bombay, while Khan became the youngest Music Director for AIR, Lucknow and was responsible for solo performances and composing for the radio orchestra.^[7]

In 1943, on his father's recommendation, Khan was appointed a court musician for the Maharaja of Jodhpur, Hanwant Singh.^[10] There, he taught and composed music besides giving recitals and was accorded the title of Ustad by the Maharaja. When the princely states were wound down with India's independence in 1947 and Hanwant Singh died in a plane crash in 1948, Khan moved to Bombay.^[7]

In Bombay, he won acclaim as a composer of several film scores, including Chetan Anand's Aandhiyan, Satyajit Ray's Devi, Merchant-Ivory's The Householder, and Tapan Sinha's Kshudhita Pashan ("Hungry stones"), for which he won the "Best Musician of the Year" award. He also played Sarod for a song in 1955 film Seema which had the music composed by Shankar Jaikishan. Later in 1993, he would score some of the music for Bernardo Bertolucci Little Buddha.^[11]

Beginning in 1945, Khan also started recording a series of 78 rpm disks (which could record about three minutes of music) at the HMV Studios in Bombay. For one such record he conceived a new composition Raga Chandranandan ("moonstruck"), based on four evening ragas, Malkauns, Chandrakauns, Nandakauns and Kaushi Kanada. This record was a huge success in India, and the raga found a worldwide audience when a 22-minute rendition was re-recorded for the Master Musician of India LP in 1965 − one of Khan's seminal recordings.^[12]

He performed in India and traveled extensively in the West. In 1956, Khan founded the Ali Akbar College of Music in Calcutta, with the mission to teach and spread Indian classical music. He founded another school of the same name in Berkeley, California in 1967 and later moved it to San Rafael, California.^[10] Khan performed in Boston with Shankar Ghosh in 1969 for the Peabody Mason Concert series. In 1985 he founded another branch of the Ali Akbar College of Music in Basel, Switzerland. Khan was the first Indian musician to record an LP album of Indian classical music in the United States and to play sarod on American television.^[13]

Khan has participated in a number of classic jugalbandi pairings, most notably with Ravi Shankar, Nikhil Banerjee and violinist L. Subramaniam. A few recordings of duets with Vilayat Khan also exist. He also collaborated with Western musicians. In August 1971, Khan performed at Madison Square Garden for the Concert for Bangladesh, along with Ravi Shankar, Alla Rakha and Kamala Chakravarty; other musicians at the concert included George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr. A live album and a movie of the event were later released.^[1][10]

Khan was based in the United States for the last four decades of his life. He toured extensively until he was prevented from doing so by ill-health in the period prior to his death from renal failure.

Personal life[link]

Ali Akbar Khan married three times, and is survived by seven sons and four daughters. His eldest son, Aashish Khan is also a renowned sarod player.^[1]

Awards[link]

Khan was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1989,^[14] among other awards. He received a MacArthur Fellowship in 1991.^[10] In 1997, Khan received the National Endowment for the Arts' prestigious National Heritage Fellowship, the United States' highest honour in the traditional arts. Khan has received two Grammy nominations.^[15]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Lavezzoli, Peter (2006). The dawn of Indian music in the West: Bhairavi. London: Continuum. ISBN 0-8264-1815-5. 
• Massey, Reginald (1996). The music of India. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 81-7017-332-9. 

External links[link]

• Ali Akbar College of Music
• Ali Akbar Khan at Allmusic
• Ali Akbar Khan at the Internet Movie Database

Amir Akbar Khan امير اکبر خان
Emir of Afghanistan
Amir Akbar Khan امير اکبر خان
Reign	1842–1845
Titles	Ghazi, Wazir, Prince, General and Tribal leader
Born	1816
Died	1845
Place of death	Jalalabad, Afghanistan
Buried	Blue Mosque, Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan
Predecessor	Shuja Shah Durrani
Successor	Amir Dost Mohammad Khan
Royal House	Barakzai dynasty
Father	Amir Dost Mohammad Khan
Mother	Mirmon Khadija Popalzai
Religious beliefs	Sunni Islam

Wazir Akbar Khan on Afghan stamps of 1976.

Amir Akbar Khan (1816–1845;Pashto: امير اکبر خان, born as Mohammad Akbar Khan (Pashto: محمد اکبر خان) and famously known as Wazir Akbar Khan, was an Afghan Prince, a general, a tribal leader and Emir. He was active in the First Anglo-Afghan War, which lasted from 1839 to 1842. He is prominent for his leadership of the national party in Kabul from 1841 to 1842, and his pursuit of the retreating British army from Kabul to Gandamak near Jalalabad in 1842. In 1837 in the battle of Jamrud he killed sikh general Hari Singh Nalwa in a planned tyrantical way by conspiring whilst trying to get back the city of Peshawar for the Afghans from the Sikh army, but Akbar Khan failed to do so.

Early life[link]

Amir Akbar Khan was born in the year 1816 as Mohammad Akbar Khan, as the son of Amir Dost Mohammad Khan of Afghanistan and to his fifth wife Mirmon Khadija Popalzai. Amir Dost Mohammad Khan had totally 2 wives, 8 sons (including Amir Akbar Khan) and 2 daughters.^[1]

Adult life[link]

He led a revolt in Kabul against the British Indian mission of William McNaughten, Alexander Burnes and their garrison of 4,500 men. In November 1841, he besieged Major-General William Elphinstone's force in Kabul. Elphinstone accepted a safe-conduct for his force and about 12,000 associated workers to flee to India; they were ambushed and massacred. It was claimed in at least one set of British war memoirs that, during the retreat, Akbar Khan could be heard alternately commanding his men, in Persian language to desist from, and in Pashto language to continue, firing.^[2]

Historians think it unlikely that Akbar Khan wished for the total annihilation of the British force. An astute man politically, he would have been aware that allowing the British to extricate themselves from Afghanistan would give him the time to consolidate his control of the diverse hill tribes; whereas a massacre of 16,500 people, of which only about a quarter were a fighting force, would not be tolerated back in London and would result in another, larger army sent to exact retribution. This was in fact what happened the following year.

Many believe that Akbar Khan was poisoned by his father, Dost Mohammed, who feared his ambitions.^[3]

In fiction[link]

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The historical figure of Akbar Khan plays a major role in George MacDonald Fraser's novel Flashman. No factual reference base for killing of Sardar Hari Singh Nalwa, however the Peshwar Gazzette of 1897 clearly shows that gulab singh Hindu dogra, forgave the tax owed by yar Mohamed barukzai which sardar hari singh had originally come to collect, it is also written by a kin of the dogras that hari singh stood in the way of dogra ruling dream so while during chase of the retreating armies of Kabul he was shot in the back fact by gulab singh's man, another fact the Afghans in the siege were repulsed and unsuccessful.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mohammad Akbar Khan

v t e Pashtuns Key figures Amir Kror Suri · Ibrahim Lodi · Sher Shah Suri · Khushal Khan Khattak · Rahman Baba · Ghiasuddin Ghori · Shahabuddin Ghori · Ala'uddin Ghilzai · Bahlul Khan Lodi · Nazo Tokhi · Mirwais Hotak · Ashraf Hotaki · Mahmud Hotaki · Mahmud Hotaki · Ahmad Shah Durrani · Timur Shah Durrani · Zaman Shah Durrani · Azad Shah Afghan · Jamaluddin Afghan · Akbar Khan · Malalai of Maiwand · Ayub Khan · Abdur Rahman Khan · Mullah Powindah · Faqir of Ipi · Amanullah Khan · Nadir Shah · Bacha Khan · Zahir Shah · Daoud Khan · Abdul Ahad Mohmand · Samad Khan · Nur Muhammad Taraki · Hafizullah Amin · Wali Khan Culture Pashtunwali · Pashto language · Pashtun tribes · Pashtun dress · Loya jirga · Attan · Khattak Dance · Mahsud Dance · Adam Khan and Durkhanai · Yusuf Khan and Sherbano Poets Amir Kror Suri · Pir Roshan · Rahman Baba · Khushal Khan Khattak · Nazo Tokhi · Abdul Hamid Baba · Hussain Hotaki · Ahmad Shah Durrani · Hamza Baba · Malang Jan · Ajmal Khattak · Kabir Stori · Ghani Khan Topics and controversies Durand Line · Khudai Khidmatgar · Pashtunistan · Kalabagh Dam · Taliban · Names of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Battles and conflicts First Battle of Panipat · Battle of Gulnabad · Third Battle of Panipat · First Anglo-Afghan War · Battle of Attock · Battle of Multan · Battle of Shopian · Battle of Nowshera · Battle of Jamrud (1837) · Siege of Malakand · Second Anglo-Afghan War · Battle of Maiwand · Tirah Campaign · Battle of Saragarhi · Third Anglo-Afghan War · Soviet war in Afghanistan · War in Afghanistan (2001–present) · War in North-West Pakistan

محمد اکبر خان

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. It includes attribution to IMDb, which may not be a reliable source for biographical information. Please help by adding additional, reliable sources for verification. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2009)

Bastiaan Johannes Ragas (born 30 June 1971) is a Dutch singer and actor. Born in Lisse, he was the youngest of three brothers. Ragas learnt piano and guitar at school. He also participated and traveled with the international musical group Up With People during their 1989-1990 tour. He first came into the public eye as a member of the Anglo-Dutch boy band Caught in the Act in the 1990s.

Caught in the Act broke up in 1998 and Ragas embarked on a solo career. His first album, Tomorrow is Looking Good, was released in 2000. Also in 2000, he played Radames in the Dutch production of the musical Aïda. He later played d'Artagnan in Joop van den Ende's 2003–2004 production of 3 Musketiers.

Ragas has also worked in film, appearing in the Frisian language film De Sportman van de Eeuw and providing the Dutch voice of Sinbad in Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas. Working on Sinbad he met TV presenter Tooske Breugem and they later starred together in 3 Musketiers in which she played Constance. Their 2003 single Alles (All I Ever Want) reached number in the Dutch charts. They married in 2005 and have three daughters. Ragas also has a son by a previous relationship with singer and TV presenter Laura Vlasblom.

In 2002 he appeared in the hospital drama TV series Trauma 24/7 along with his elder brother Roef. He was on the jury of the Dutch production of Popstars and came second in the Dutch 2006 series of Dancing with the Stars.

External links[link]

• IMDB

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