USTAD AMIR KHAN: The Single Most Influential Hindustani Vocalist of the 20th Century!

Born in April 1912 in Kalanaur, Amir Khan began his musical training as a Sarangi- disciple of his father Ustad Shahmir Khan, a noted Sarangi player who had learnt his art from Chajju Khan and Nazir Khan of the Bhindibazar Gharana. Amir Khan’s early grooming in Sarangi was only the foundation of his musical edifice. He had a vision and imagination of his own for higher artistic flights. Being a reputed artiste and a warm friendly person, Shahmir Khan’s hospitable home was a veritable rendezvous of many great contemporary maestros like Ustads Allabande Khan, Jafruddin, Nasiruddin Khan, Beenkar Wahid Khan, Rajab Ali Khan, Hafeez Khan, Sarangi- Nawaz Bundu Khan, Beenkar Murad Khan and several others. Thus, although Amir Khans’s early musical training commenced with Sarangi, the impressionable and intelligent youngster was constantly exposed to the various vocal gharanas of the times. Gradually, Shahmir Khan himself began to devote more time to Amir Khan’s vocal training in which merukhand (or Khandmeru) practice and Sargam-singing were especially emphasised. Moulded by the styles of three great giants of his younger days, namely, Ustads Bahre Wahid Khan, Rajab Ali Khan and Aman Ali Khan, Amir Khan evolved his stylistic school which came to be known as “the Indore Gharana.”

Since 1968, Khan Saheb used to go to the U.S.A in alternate years to spend the summer with his son Ekram Ahmad Khan, a graduate in chemical engineering from McGill University who has settled down in the U.S.A as an Engineering Manager in Canada. [Sounds odd, doesn’t it? Maybe he lives in Buffalo and drives to Toronto for work:-). I wonder where Ekram is today and if he has any private unissued recordings of the Khansaheb – RP] Amir Khan also used to go as a visiting professor of music at the State University of New York at New Paltz where “he planted not only the seeds of his music among the students but also left behind the legacy of his Sufi philosophy”. Fourteenth February 1974 was an ill-fated day for Hindustani music because it lost two great stalwarts on the same day. Pt. Srikrishna Narayan Ratanjankar succumbed to protracted illness. Ustad Amir Khan in the height of his form and fame was tragically killed in a car accident. Although in his early sixties the Ustad was still a force to reckon with in North Indian music and had it not been for that grievous accident, he might have easily gone on dominating the music world for another decade or so. The world of Indian music went into mourning on l3th February 1974, and there were public condolence meetings in numerous cities. Programmes of tributes to the two departed maestros were broadcast from all the important Stations of All India Radio.

I do not own the copyright to any of the records used in this video. These music records will be copyrighted by those who have actual rights over them. I express my thanks and gratitude to all the collectors of records and those who made them available to music lovers!

Some links to his melodious songs:
I. Top 65 Songs:    • Tribute to Ustad Amir Khan | Top 65 S...  
II. Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje:    • Ustad Amir Khan Saheb.. Jhanak Jhanak...  
III. Rag Malkauns:    • Ustad Amir Khan  Raga Malkauns  
IV. Rag Marwa:    • Ustad Amir Khan. Raga Marwa. 1960  
V. Rag Bihag:    • Bihag - The Last Concert of Ustad Ami...