AMRITA BAZAR PATRIKA | 31 December 1940 | Page 7
All Bengal Music Conference Second Day Concerts
CLASSICAL RAGAS
Demonstration of Ahir-Bhairav
One wishes a larger audience as presents as yesterday’s morning demonstration at the music conference. Now holding session on board the first empire to hear Ustad Bhallal Mahammad Rababi of Amristsar, (a direct disciple of the famous Hindu musician Pt. Bhaskar Rao), an artist of superior excellence, endowed with a high intuitive artistic sense who is able to hold big audiences in rapt attention for any length of time. Bhallal Saheb was booked to sing after 1 p.m; i.e at a time when the audience melted away for lunch. He had to sing before a very thin house, of course appreciative elements and Vidwans were all present on the stage, some of whom lavished high encomiums on the artist for his really soul-stirring performance. Bhallab Saheb commenced his repertoire with an Alap in an appropriate Rag-Ahir Bhairav, a sampooran one with Bhairav in the Poorvang and Kafi in the Uttarang. He proceeded with a Bilampat and then a Drut Kheyal and concluded with a Tarana of a same Raga.His display was characterised by a remarkable individuality and rich imagination. Rag Chandrkaswar describes Ahir Bhairav as ‘Ati Bichitra’ and Bhallal Saheb with an (inmate) artistic consciousness did the technical elaboration of the Raga and played ‘Swaras’, scrupulously conserving the purity of his style in such a way that even the ears of a few good fastidious purists failed to be offended. Bhallal Saheb gave his first demonstration on Sunday night when he gave an Alap and kheyal in Malkoush.
Among other artists of repute who demonstrated 2nd, 3rd and 4th sittings, i.e. on Sunday night and Monday morning and evening included Srimati Hirabai Barodekar, Pt. Onkar nath Thakur, Prof. P.A. Sundar(?)Iyer ( Violin), Prof Nageswar Rao, Prof Shafiullah Khan (Setar), Prof Naseer Khan (Dukkar play in Dhamar), Sj. Bimala Kanta Roy Choudhury (Sitaar in Pilu and Kafi), Sm Menaka Bal (Kheyal in Shankara, Thumri Bhajan and dance), Prof Ram Chandra Bhatt (Dhrupad), Prof. Gopeswar Banerjee ( Dhrupad in Chhayanat and Narayani), Prof. Ziauddin Khan (Dhrupad in Darbad Kanada), Sj. Jatadhar Jha (Kheyal In Purabi and Bhajan), Prof. Wazid Khan (Tabla Lehra), Sj.Krishna Ch. Dey ( Dhrupad in Darbari), Sj. Jnanendra Praosad Goswami (Kheyal in Jaijayanti), Pandit Maganlal of Panchgachia (?) (Kheyal in Vasant-Vahar), Dani Babu (Dhrupad in Bhairav and Asavari), Prof. Shafiullah Khan (Alap in Badhamsasarang and Gat in Brindabani), Prof Nageswar Rao ( Kheyal in Lalit), and Miss Bijanbala Ghose Dastidar (Lalit-Kheyal).
Comments on Sm. Hirabai’s and other artists’ performances will be published in a future issue.
TO-DAY’S PROGRAMME
Morning 9-30 A.M.: – Demonstration by competitors.
Demonstration by musicians :- Prof. Ramanuj Iyangar of Madras (Veen), Nilimarani Dutt of Tatanagar (Kheyal), Sj. Hirendra Kumar Ganguly (Tabla Lehra), Prof. Asfaque Hussain Khan of Surgana (?) State ( Kheyal), Sm. Menaka Bal of Bombay Kheyal Pt.Onkarnath Thakur (kheyal and Bhajan) an Sj.Jnanendra Pd. Goswami (Kheyal).
Evening at 5.30.P.M.:- – Demonstration by competitors.
Demonstration by musicians :- Amarnath Bhattacharya (Dhrupad), Sudhir Majumdar and Ram Kissen Misra (Kheyal), Dhirendra Chandra Mitra (Felu Babu)-Thumri, Nirmala Majumdar (Kheyal), Sachin Deb Burman ( Bengali Songs), Kalyani Debi of Benares (Dance), Prof. Ali-Ahmed Khan (Sitar), Ustad Ghulam Ali Khan of Lahore (Kheyal) and Prof. Hiralal of Jaipur (Dance).
After an interval of 15 minutes the following artists will demonstrate:-
Lalit Mohan Mukherjee (Dhrupad), Master Madan of Kutlehar (?) State (Kheyal), Mustaque Hussain Khan of Rampur (Kheyal), and Pt. Maganlal (Kheyal).
Source:
“Amrita Bazar Patrika [Daily]. Vol: 72; Issue:361 (31 December 1940).” Accessed November 23, 2016. http://eap.bl.uk/database/large_image.a4d?digrec=4266682;catid=226953;r=26962.
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Identified by Rajeswary Ganguly Banerjee, Research Fellow
Special support – Dr. Suranjita Paul
Data processed at SAP-DRS Lab, Department of Instrumental Music, Rabindra Bharati University.