Indian music, be it art, semi-classical, light, folk, devotional or popular music, centers around well structured melodic and rhythmic compositions known as bandish. It represents a central idea or base upon which the edifice of the performance is sculpted and realised.
A composer (vaggeykar, nayak, rachnakar) as the creator of both lyrics (sahitya) and melodic or rhythmic content is a much revered figure in the Indian tradition. The collective works of many composers through the ages have given rise to a vast repository of musical ideas that constitute our musical heritage today. Even present-day performers (across all styles and genres) find pride in drawing upon traditional compositions to lend credibility to their art.
Contemporary performance practices are replete with compositions that can be traced back to medieval poet-musicians. The textual content of compositions covers a wide range of subjects in varied Indian languages. Hundreds of melodies (ragas and dhuns) have been the basis for compositions in diverse genres: dhrupad, dhamar, hori, khayal, kriti, padam, geet, ghazal, thumri, tarana, tappa, qaul, qalbana etc.
This three-day festival will showcase some of the most treasured works of the great composers, presented by eminent artistes from north and south India.
11th July
Shekhar Sen
Shujaat Husain Khan
The works of Raskhan (1541–1603) and Raheem (1556–1627) epitomise religious syncretism. Though of Muslim origin, the major corpus of their work is devoted to Lord Krishna.
Shekhar Sen, a music composer, lyricist and actor, will present the compositions (pad, geet) of Raskhan and Raheem.
The finale of the Festival will be the presentations of ghazal, qaul and qalbana, composed by the legendary poet and musician Amir Khusrau Dehlavi (1253 AD), by Shujaat Husain Khan with his unusual style that draws from his remarkable ability to express through voice as well as the vocalised idiom of the sitar.
