Kirana gharana

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An illustration of the Kirana Gharana's ancestry prepared by Mashkoor Ali Khan. KiranaGharanaFamilyTree.jpg
An illustration of the Kirana Gharana's ancestry prepared by Mashkoor Ali Khan.

The Kirana Gharana is a Hindustani music apprenticeship tradition ( gharana ) made popular by Bande Ali Khan in the 19th Century and his cousins Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan. [1] [2] Evolved from the instrumental and vocal Gauharbani dhrupad lineages of medieval music maestros Nayak Gopal, Nayak Dhondu, and Nayak Bhanu. Later, this tradition came to be reputed for khayal, thumri, dadra, ghazal, bhajan, abhang, and natya sangeet. This gharana is known for producing acclaimed musicians like Sawai Gandharva, Sureshbabu Mane, Hirabai Barodekar, Amir Khan, Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi, Roshanara Begum, Mohammed Rafi, Prabha Atre, Mashkoor Ali Khan Kaivalya Kumar Gurav, Pran Nath, Anand Bhate, Sanhita Nandi, and Jayateerth Mevundi. Consequently, this gharana developed a reputation for its distinctly sweet, devotional, and intense vocalism.

Contents

Background

Photograph of Abdul Karim Khan in performance supported by his student, Sawai Gandharva, on tanpura. UstadKarimKhan1.jpg
Photograph of Abdul Karim Khan in performance supported by his student, Sawai Gandharva, on tanpura.

Awareness about the Kirana Gharana grew with the rising status of Beenkar Bande Ali Khan in the Gwalior Court and Indore Court in the mid-19th Century. [3] Due to his fame, members of his extended family, such as vocalists Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan, began describing themselves as from the same gharana. The Kirana Gharana takes its name from the birth place of Bande Ali Khan, Kairana, though the family is said to originate from Saharanpur District. [4] [5] Bande Ali Khan is arguably the most influential Hindustani Classical instrumentalist of the 19th Century. [6] In its initial decades, the importance of Kirana Gharana was derived from his status. Since, the fame of Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan extended the gharana's name which came to be associated with singing.

History

Photograph of Bande Ali Khan playing the Rudra Veena. BandeAliKhanSahib.jpg
Photograph of Bande Ali Khan playing the Rudra Veena.

In the 19th Century, the Kirana gharana coalesced around Bande Ali Khan, a renowned musician of the rudra veena. The gharana's style was further developed, and established as one of the prominent styles in modern Hindustani classical music in the early 20th Century by musicians Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan. [7]

The Kirana Gharana includes an extensive family of musicians and their traditions which can be distinguished by four lineages: that of Bande Ali Khan, Abdul Karim Khan, Abdul Wahid Khan, and Fayyaz Ahmed & Niyaz Ahmed Khan.

Bande Ali Khan

Bande Ali Khan was one of the most influential musicians in the 19th Century. Though he directly taught few musicians, his influence expanded to many other musicians and their gharanas. Those claiming to be his disciples come from Mewati Gharana, Etawah Gharana, Sonipat-Panipat Gharana, Indore Gharana, and others.

Abdul Karim Khan

Bhimsen Joshi, among the most famous members of the Kirana Gharana and heir of Abdul Karim Khan's style. Bhimsen Joshi.jpg
Bhimsen Joshi, among the most famous members of the Kirana Gharana and heir of Abdul Karim Khan's style.

Abdul Karim Khan was one of the most influential classical musicians in the 20th Century. He was an extremely popular musician across the subcontinent. His success proved highly influential in popularizing the Kirana Gharana.

A frequent visitor to the Court of Mysore, Abdul Karim Khan was also influenced by Carnatic music.

Owing to his popularity, most contemporary Hindustani musicians from Karnataka are exponents of Kirana gharana, and Kirana gharana in turn has absorbed many of the features of the Carnatic tradition. The border region between Karnataka and Maharashtra is particularly associated with this gharana. [2]

Abdul Karim Khan's tradition continued with Sawai Gandharva, Sureshbabu Mane, Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi, Kaivalya Kumar Gurav, Jayateerth Mevundi, and Anand Bhate.

Abdul Wahid Khan

Photograph of Amir Khan. Though from the Bhendi Bazaar tradition of Moradabad, his time with Abdul Wahid Khan at the Indore Court left a great impression on his musical philosophy. Ustad Amir Khan (1).jpg
Photograph of Amir Khan. Though from the Bhendi Bazaar tradition of Moradabad, his time with Abdul Wahid Khan at the Indore Court left a great impression on his musical philosophy.

The other primary master of the gharana, in the early 20th century, was Abdul Karim Khan's cousin Abdul Wahid Khan who chose to settle at Lahore, Pakistan after the 1947 Partition of British India.

Abdul Wahid Khan's tradition continued with Pran Nath, Hirabai Barodekar, Amir Khan, Prabha Atre, and Venkatesh Kumar.

Fayyaz Ahmed & Niyaz Ahmed Khan

Brothers Fayyaz Ahmed & Niyaz Ahmed Khan became popular in the 1960s due to their jugalbandi performances. [8] The duo earned much appreciation and respect from musicians, critics, and audiences. [9] They represent a branch of the Kirana Gharana family distinct from Bande Ali Khan, Abdul Karim Khan, and Abdul Wahid Khan, but share the same ancestors.

Philosophy

Aesthetics

Vocalism

Photograph of Abdul Karim Khan who was celebrated for the extraordinary sweetness and tunefulness of his voice. Abdul Karim Khan.jpg
Photograph of Abdul Karim Khan who was celebrated for the extraordinary sweetness and tunefulness of his voice.

The central concern of the Kirana style is swara, or individual notes, in particular precise tuning and expression of notes. In the Kirana Gayaki (singing style), the individual notes (swaras) of the raga are not just random points in the scale, but independent realms of music capable of horizontal expansion. Emotional pukars in the higher octaves form a part of the musical experience. Another unique feature of this gharana is the intricate and ornate use of the sargam taan (weaving patterns with the notations themselves) introduced by Abdul Karim Khan under influence from the Carnatic classical style. [1] [2]

Tempo

In the late nineteenth century Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan revolutionized the khayal gayaki by introducing the vilambit (a slow tempo section) to delineate the structure of the raga note by note. [7]

Repertoire

Ragas

Photograph of Gangubai Hangal with her daughter and student, Krishna Hangal. Both have become regarded for bringing feminine sensibilities to the Kirana style. Gangubai Hangal.jpg
Photograph of Gangubai Hangal with her daughter and student, Krishna Hangal. Both have become regarded for bringing feminine sensibilities to the Kirana style.

Ragas frequently performed by musicians of the Kirana Gharana include Miyan Ki Todi, Lalit, Multani, Patdeep, Puriya, Marwa, Shuddha Kalyan, Darbari Kanada, and Komal Rishabh Asavari. P. L. Deshpande commented that performers from the Kirana gharana are particularly fond of the komal rishabh note, a frequent feature of these commonly performed ragas. [2]

The Kirana Gharana also uniquely possesses many rare ragas including Suryakauns, Hindolita, Kalashri, Lalit Bhatiyar, Marwa Shree, and others.

Kumar Prasad Mukherjee noted Abdul Karim Khan's gifted ability to "revel" in "lighter ragas" like Gara, Barwa, Pilu, Khamaj, Kafi, and Tilak Kamod. [10]

Bandishes

Mukherjee notes that Kirana Gharana musicians uniquely possess compositions by Hussain Ali Khan "Hingarang" and "Sabras." [10]

Teaching

Ancestral pedagogy of Kirana Gharana

This tree details the hereditary lineage of the Kirana Gharana based on several documented accounts. [11]

Nayak
Gopal
Nayak
Bhannu
Nayak
Dhondu
Ramzani Khan
(Beenkar)
Gullu KhanGazi
Khan
Mohammed Zama
Khan (Beenkar)
Hussain Ali
Khan "Hingarang"
Ghulam Maula
Khan
Rahim Ali
Khan
Allarakha Khan
(Dhrupadiya)
Langde Hussain
Khan
Ilahi BakshDhumi
Khan
Shahab
Khan
Vajid Ali
Khan
Ghulam Taki
Khan
Ghalum Kasim
Khan
Ghalum Zamin
Khan
Ghalum Azam
Khan
Abdul Majid
Khan
Abdul Rahim
Khan
Abdul Aziz
Khan
Nanne
Khan
Mehboob
Baksh
Kale
Khan
Abdulla
Khan
Shende
Khan
Sadiq Ali
Khan
Khadin Hussain
Khan
Hussain Ali
(Beenkar)
Habeeb
Khan
Abdul Wahid
Khan
Abdul Gafur
Khan
Abdul Razaq
Khan
Abdul Rehman
Khan
Rahim
Baksh
Hyder Baksh
Khan
Rahman
Baksh Khan
Abdul Karim
Khan
Abdul Haqq
Khan
Abdul Latif
Khan
Haider Ali
Khan
Bande Ali
Khan
(Beenkar)
Hafizullah
Khan
Abdul Haqq
Khan
Shakoor
Khan
Gani
Khan
Abdul Bashir
Khan
Majid
Khan
Hamid
Khan
Sureshbabu
Mane
Hirabai
Badodekar
Abdul Rehhman
Khan
Saraswati
Rane
Kanniz
Begum
Umrao
Begum
Samiulla
Khan
Akhtar Nawaz
Khan
Mubarak Ali
Khan
Mashkoor
Ali Khan
Niyaz & Fayyaz
Ahmed Khan
Noor Hasan
Khan
Sattar
Khan
Babu
Khan
Amjad Ali
Khan
Arshad Ali
Khan
Shahana
Ali Khan
Riyaz Ahmed
Khan
Sarfaraz
Ahmed Khan

Lineage

Gopal Nayak
Nayak Dhondu Nayak Bhannu
Ghulam Ali Ghulam Maula
Utd. Bande Ali Khan
Utd. Eliahee Baksh Khan Utd. Abdullah Khan Utd. Kale Khan Utd. Nanhe Khan
Utd. Majid Khan Utd. Abdul Habib Khan Utd. Abdul Karim Khan (founder) Utd. Abdul Haq Khan
Utd. Abdul Wahid Khan
Pt. Balkrishnabuwa Kapileshwari Pt. Sawai Gandharva Pt. Ganpatrao Gurav
Pt. Vishwanathbuwa Jadhav Pt. Sureshbabu Mane Pt. Ganpatbuwa Behere Pt. Dasharathbuwa Muley
Smt. Hirabai Badodekar Pt. Shankarrao Sarnaik
Pran Nath Begum Akhtar Pt. Sukhdev Prasad Utd. Shakoor Khan (sarangiya) Smt. Saraswati Rane Master Krishnarao) Smt. Gangubai Hangal
Utd. Hafizullah Khan Mohammed Rafi (playback singer) Pt. Ram Narayan (sarangiya) Pt. Baburao Jadhav Pt. Basavaraj Rajguru Firoz Dastur Bharat Ratna Pt. Bhimsen Joshi Roshan Ara Begum Pt. Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik Pt. Sangmeshwar Gurav
Pt. Rajaram Jadhav
Pt. Mani Prasad Mashkoor
Ali Khan
Smt. Shakuntalaraje Jadhav Dr. Prabha Atre Pt. Chandrakant Kapileshwari Smt. Krishna Hangal Shrikant Deshpande Pt. Madhav Gudi Sripathi Padigar
Pt. Pandurang Jadhav
Marian Zazeela La
Monte
Young
Terry
Riley
Shabda
Kahn
Smt. Pranati Mhatre Pt. Parameshwar Hegde Milind Chittal Anand Bhate Shrinivas Joshi Rajendra Kandalgaonkar Pt. Kaivalya Kumar Gurav
Michael
Harrison
Arati Thakur
Jung Hee Choi Nachiketa Yakkundi Srivani Jade Pt. Nagaraja Rao Havaldar Prasanna Gudi Jayateerth Mevundi Balachandra Prabhu Vijaykumar Patil
Amjad
Ali Khan
Arshad
Ali Khan
Omkarnath Havaldar

Exponents

19th century

20th century

21st Century

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Jyoti Nair Belliappa. "Fine sample of Kirana gharana". The Hindu newspaper. Archived from the original on 3 January 2004. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Torch-bearers of kirana gharana, and their followers". The Times of India. 26 January 2011. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  3. Divekar, Hindraj; Tribhuwan, Robin D. (2001). Rudra Veena: An Ancient String Musical Instrument. Discovery Publishing House. p. 34. ISBN   9788171415816.
  4. "Bandé Ali Khan". Oxford Reference.
  5. Neuman, aniel M. (1990). The Life of Music in North India: The Organization of an Artistic Tradition. University of Chicago Press. p. 268. ISBN   9780226575162.
  6. Sanyal, Ritwik; Widdess, Richard (2023). Dhrupad: Tradition and Performance in Indian Music. Taylor & Francis. p. 117. ISBN   9781000845433.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Kirana gharana". ITC Sangeet Research Academy website. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  8. Nadkarni, Mohan (1999). The Great Masters: Profiles in Hindustani Classical Vocal Music. HarperCollins Publishers India. p. 29. ISBN   9788172232849.
  9. Nadkarni, Mohan (22 May 1988). "Tributes to Fayyaz Ahmad Khan". The Economic Times.
  10. 1 2 Mukherjee, Kumar Prasad (2006). The Lost World of Hindustani Music. Penguin Books. p. 292. ISBN   9780143061991.
  11. Dasasarma, Amala (1993). Musicians of India: Past and Present Gharanas of Hindustani Music and Genealogies. Naya Prokash. pp. 133, 134, 142, 143, 145, 222. ISBN   9788185421186.
  12. Khanna, Amit (2019). Words. Sounds. Images.: A History of Media and Entertainment in India. HarperCollins India. p. 1846. ISBN   9789353573522.
  13. Shafi, Afshana (2017). The Legacy of Gangubai Hangal. Horizon Books. p. 93. ISBN   9789386369567.

Bibliography