Amjad Ali Khan바카라s recollections of 11 great classical musicians do have well-known details, but his anecdotes are lit up by a sense of 바카라ethereality바카라
A discerning sentence in the initial pages goes thus: 바카라I believe in being traditional, not conventional바카라. Amjad Ali Khan then goes on to explain the difference in the long introductory note, and tacitly reiterates it in the subsequent chapters on a dozen exponents of Indian classical music in the 20th century.
While referring to Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, the author notes that the Patiala gharana vocalist believed the audience would not appreciate overly long compositions. Much later, in the penultimate chapter바카라on Kumar Gandharva바카라Amjad Ali counters a popular notion that the prodigy-turned-icon was a non-conformist. Modernising without losing the superstructure is, to the sarod maestro, defying convention, while upholding tradition. He cites an early 1980s incident as an instance. When Amjad Ali recorded an album of short pieces, he was flayed for the 바카라capsules바카라. To him, the challenge was to distil the essence of a raga in a short time, as 바카라after maybe an hour it was all repetition바카라. That바카라s why, the idea of 바카라extended바카라 compositions didn바카라t go well with Ghulam Ali and 바카라Kumarji rightly believed that tradition is the ever-flowing river into which you never step twice바카라.
Master on Masters constantly gives a peek into the Gwalior-born author바카라s aesthetics about music amid reminiscing about 11 Hindustani and a Carnatic titan. Yet, the 71-year-old sarodiya tends to repeat well-known basic details, when the average reader would be eager for anecdotes. Some of them the book does offer are interesting.
The author recalls Amir Khan (1912-74), the famed vocalist, singing after his short concert at the official residence of A.N. Jha, Delhi바카라s first lieutenant-governor. Amir, typically, 바카라sang for himself바카라 and realised at one point the hall had no one, except his accompanists and Amjad Ali! A couple of years later, in 1971 in Calcutta, Amir magnanimously ignored protocol and let his gaayan be succeeded by Amjad Ali, who happened to arrive late. When the vocalist died in a car accident three years later, a heart-broken Amjad Ali composed a raga: Amiri Todi.
바카라Ethereality바카라 is one thing the sarodiya can impulsively sense in music. The ustad was in his car when a woman singing on the radio sounded 바카라spiritual바카라. He parked the vehicle by the road, and it did eventually confirm his suspicion: the end-concert announcement said the piece was by M.S. Subbulakshmi. Visits to the Carnatic doyenne바카라s Chennai house used to be laced with the anticipation of filter coffee, but once what the guest got in the tumbler had a different taste. 바카라It바카라s Horlicks,바카라 she said, amused by Amjad Ali바카라s facial reaction. 바카라Good for health.바카라
Up north in Varanasi, shehnai legend Bismillah Khan chose to skip his namaaz one morning, listening to Amjad Ali on stage. 바카라Sangeet bhi toh ibadat hai (music, too, is devotion),바카라 the piper said, recalling the episode years later at Chennai, where he was to receive an award in the name of the author바카라s father, Haafiz Ali Khan, the renowned sarodiya whose name frequently finds reverent mention in the book.
Deaths of some musicians come with drama. In 2011, Amjad Ali was at Pune, where he met an ailing Bhimsen Joshi. The Bharat Ratna awardee바카라바카라who credited my father with teaching him the difference between the ragas Puriya and Marwa바카라바카라passed away the next day. Eleven years prior to it, Amjad Ali learned about the death of Alla Rakha. He rushed to the tabla maestro바카라s house, where master바카라s daughter, too, had passed away less than 24 hours ago.
In 1984, a wire service ran back-to-back interviews of Pt Ravi Shankar and Amjad Ali, leading the media to stir an imaginary story of a tussle between them. Soon, both were on tours abroad, and converged at Ottawa, where the sitarist wished to meet the sarodiya and thrash out the matter. It didn바카라t happen, for Amjad Ali 바카라felt it was inappropriate on my part to have that kind of conversation with him바카라.
Amjad Ali바카라s first meeting with Kishan Maharaj was at his concert, where the tabla great accompanied him at his native Varanasi. Thirty years later, in 1993, Maharaj was to play for Amjad Ali바카라s sons, Amaan and Ayaan. Kesarbai Kerkar, the author recalls, was 바카라choosy about concerts바카라, while 바카라evergreen diva바카라, Begum Akhtar, sang with simplicity바카라바카라the most difficult바카라 of achievements.
A big honour, Amjad Ali believes, came to him from Vilayat Khan. At Delhi in 1994, the sitarist strayed from raga Shree to Pilu바카라and attributed it to an Amjad Ali hangover. For, Vilayat had listened to the sarodiya바카라s Pilu at the same venue the previous evening. Not surprisingly, the author says he prefers live recording to that in studio. For, ragas are 바카라a matter or mood바카라 or 바카라the time of day바카라.