Agra Gharana | Documentary | By Kumar Prasad Mukherjee, Vijay Kichlu & Other Agra Artists | 2000

Apart from Kumar Prasad Mukherjee, there are Vijay Kichlu, Shafi Ahmed Khan, Purnima Sen, Sumati Mutatkar, Dipali Nag, Lalit Rao, Arif Husain Khan (Yunus Husain Khan's son) who feature prominently.

"If Zohrabai was the Taj Mahal, Faiyaz Khan was the Fatehpur Sikri with its Buland Darwaza'

A Centre for Cultural Resources and Training Presentation
2000
Direction: Bhadra Basu
Research Director: Kumar Prasad Mukherjee
Research & Script: Asit Basu
Production Incharge: Satish Kumar
Camera: Satish Kumar
Sound: Harish Palsule
Editing: SB Verma
Lighting Assistant Harish Kumar
Assistant: Ved Prakash Sati

Not meant for any commercial purpose whatsoever. Shared only for educational purposes. No copyright infringement intended.

From the description of Part I

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Agra is known as the city of architectural grandeur. Hindustani Classical Music flourished under the patronage of King Akbar. The word Gharana is believed to be a combination of a Hindi word, Ghar (house) and a Persian word ana (of the). Therefore, the concept of Gharana implies an exclusive style of singing where basic notations of the Ragas remain the same, which are sung according to the particular style followed by a Gharana. Agra Gharana is a blend of Khayal Gayaki and Dhrupad-Dhamar. Ustad Ghagge Khuda Baksh is considered to be an important person in the field of Khayal Gayaki, who transformed the old style to derive his own style of Khayal Gayaki. Gwalior Gharana is considered to be the parent of Khayal tradition, although they are believed to have imported Khayal from Lucknow. It was during the reign of Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah that his court musician, Ghulam Rasood invented the Khayal gayaki. Interestingly, his son, Ghulam Navi is known to be the master of Tappa Gayaki. (He is also known as Shore miyan) He went to Punjab to study the ethnic music of Punjab and gave it a new form. This was exported to Gwalior by Shore Miyan which consequently explains the closeness of Gwalior Gayaki with Tappa.

Agra Gharana was originally connected with the dhrupad tradition, where Khayal Gayaki was introduced later. It is associated with Nauhar Bani which is known to have existed from the period of Allauddin Khilji. The first recorded music of Agra Gharana was by its famous member Zohrabai Agrewali. She was a disciple of Ustad Sher Khan, Ustad Kallan Khan and Ustad Mehboob Khan. It is said that Zoharabai’s gayaki was close to the Gwalior tradition as well. She was also known for her singing of Thumri and Ghazal which she learned from Ahmad Khan of Dhaka.

Agra and Jaipur Gharana were particular about Raag Roop. One of the notable personalities of Agra Gharana was Ustad Faiyaz Khan. He felt the need of alap and vistar in Khyal Gayaki and he combined dhrupad with khayal singing, which was one of his specialties. He was the court musician of Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III, the Maharaja of Baroda.

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From the description of Part 2:

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Agra Gharana represents a unique tradition of Hindustani Classical Music. Its compositions are known to be remarkable for their lyrical beauty and also for their musical potential. The bandishes of the Ragas are deeply influenced by the Braj culture, i.e. Lord Krishna and his enchanting leelas, making it the most fascinating part of the Agra Gharana Gayaki. One of the famous singers of this Gharana is Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan who composed various bandishes under the pen name ‘pran Piya’. Another Indian classical vocalist was Ustad Sharafat Hussain Khan. He pioneered the knowledge of three gharanas - Agra, Atrauli, and Rangile. Khadim Hussain Khan Sahab was a great Hindustani Classical singer and a lyricist as well. He composed nearly 150 bandishes under the umbrella of Agra Gharana. He also emphasized on poetry while singing. Agra Gharana uses all five vowels whereas the other Gharanas use only two-three vowels while singing. It also combines the styles of Dhrupad and Dhamar. The pronunciation of the bol in Agra Gharana makes it an extraordinary and great form of Gayaki. Pronunciation is not limited to the clarity of the sound but syllables also. The creation and distribution of bols are bound in patterns in the gayaki of Agra Gharana. The teachers of this gharana train their disciples with the required techniques and variations, to sing a bandish pertaining to the style and integrity of the gharana. The pronunciation, variations in tempo, and rhythm mark the mastery of an artist in Agra Gharana.

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