Four Songs : my Choice 12

It is now common knowledge that Indian classical music has powers that heal the cerebrum, the part of human brain that controls emotions. There are many Ragas in Indian classical music and each Raga creates a different mood. A Raga can make you so happy that you may want to dance or it can make you so sad that it may bring tears to your eyes. The Vilambit (slow) portion of the Raga has the deepest impact. Experience yourself, the magic of the Vilambits.

Kaushiki Chakrabarty - Raga Shuddh Kalyan (33:36) :  



Jagdish Prasad - Raga Gorakh Kalyan (45:19) :  





A Kanan - Raga Maru Behag (14:01) :  



Arati Ankalikar - Raga Nand (16:22) :  



.. more songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 11

Most connoisseurs of art feel this strong urge to display their own preferences and taste in that particular art form. Almost everytime, deep inside them, they wish to see nods of approval from others, that their taste is indeed perfect and deserving of a true evaluator. Here are some more gems from my favourite playlist of Hindustani classical music, subject to your nods ..and nudges, of course.

Ajoy Chakrabarty - Raga Abhogi :  



Amir Khan - Raga Kalashri :  





Ghulam Mustafa Khan - Raga Megh :  



Parween Sultana - Raga Amba Manohari :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 10

Here are some more songs of my choice and liking. A few gems from my favourite playlist. All the vocalists are renowned names. Firoz Dastur (1919–2008) was a well known, and probably the most successful, Hindustani classical singer from the Parsi community.

Firoz Dastur - Thumri Kafi - Bawre Dam De Gayo Kanha :  



Bhimsen Joshi - Thumri Tilang - Kahe Ko Neha Lagaye :  





Pandit Jasraj - Bhajan - Jhulat De :  



Rashid Khan - Yaman - Aao Balama :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 9

Once again I am posting a few songs of my choice. All the artists featured this time are very well known to real connoisseurs of classical music, hence I am skipping the introduction bit.

Mallikarjun Mansur - Basanti Kedar - Atar Sugandh Gulab :  



Kumar Gandharva - Shuddh Shyam - Moye Bula Ke Poochho Na :  





Roshanara Begum - Maru Bihag - Rasiya Aayo Naa :  



Jagdish Prasad - Dadra - More Naina Bhar Bhar Aaye :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 8

Yet one more time, presented here are a few songs that I like. All the four artists are renowned vocalists and need no introduction.

Bhimsen Joshi - Pilu Thumri - Nadiya Kinare Mora Gaon :  



Ajoy Chakrabarty - Gori Dhirey Chalo :  





Rashid Khan - Pilu Dadra - Ab Maan Jao Saiyan :  



Lakshmi Shankar - Sajanwa Jaagi Sari Rain :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 7

Here I come once again with a few songs of my choice. All the four artists featured this time are first timers on this blog.

Vasantrao Deshpande (1920-1983), as we all know was one of India's most illustrious classical vocalists. He was equally at ease with the thumri, dadra and ghazal forms. He was an academician too and earned a Ph.D on his thesis on Hindustani Classical music. He was invited to several educational institutions to deliver lectures on music, quite often with live demonstrations.

Ravi Kichlu (1932–1993) was a prominent classical Hindustani vocalist of Agra Gharana, who formed a well known duo with his brother Vijay Kichlu. He also played cricket for Uttar Pradesh.

Vasantrao Deshpande - Madhukauns - Daras Deo Mohe Ram :  



Ravi Kichlu - Jaunpuri - Phulwan Ki Gaggan Meinka Na Maro :  





Sheila Dhar (1929-2001), will not be remembered as much for her singing as for what she wrote about the practitioners and practice of singing. She was a pupil of Pandit Pran Nath of the Kirana Gharana. Born in a Mathur Kayastha family, she was married to P N Dhar, Principal Secretary of late Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi. She obtained her MA in English from Boston University. She was a renowned storyteller, musician, and authority on Hindustani classical music. In one of her memoirs she has recalled interesting tales about the Pandits and Ustads of classical music and their fondness for food. As she said quite often : "Raga, Rasoi, Pagree, kabhi kabhi ban jaye..." (melody, food and turban, seldomly come right).

Padmavati Shaligram, born in 1918 in Kolhapur, is one of the senior most vocalists of Hindustani music. She was groomed in the Jaipur Atrauli tradition. She has been performing in public since she was thirteen and climbed to the height of success and glory very early in life. She has been a top ranked performer with the All India Radio, besides featuring in numerous concerts in both the northern and southern states of the country.

Sheila Dhar - Raga Kausi Kanhra :  



Padmavati Shaligram - Raga Nand :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 6

After the partition of India in 1947, the new born Pakistan was so beset with insurmountable problems that fine arts virtually remained neglected. History’s largest migration of people had totally upset the equilibrium of the population not only physically but also emotionally and psychologically. During such times, the fine arts could not get the attention of the people. Classical music was neglected more than anything else. The musicians were totally frustrated as there were no takers. Many took refuge in Ghazal singing to make ends meet. The height of despair was reflected in the decision of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to leave the country and settle back down in India, where connoisseurs of classical music were abound.

In remembrance of those days, here are a few songs of my choice, each one hand picked and posted here for your listening pleasure.

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan - Raga Darbari Kanada :  



Ajoy Chakrabarty - Raga Malkauns :  





Nirmalya Dey - Raga Bageshri :  



Jitendra Abhisheki - Raga Kafi :  



.. more Songs of my Choice »

Four Songs : my Choice 5

Once again, here are a few songs of my choice, each one a priceless gem, and in my view, one of the best from the respective artists :

Ajoy Chakrabarty - Kajri - Nimbua Tale Dola Rakhde :  (Download)



Girija Devi - Hindola :  (Download)





Nazakat & Salamat Ali Khan - Thumri Pahadi :  (Download)



Rashid Khan - Charukeshi - Palaka Na Lagi Mori Guiyan :  (Download)



.. more Songs of my Choice »

P.S : As I have always believed in giving my visitors, the play and download option for all songs, no wonder I am faced with a serious bandwidth issue. As a result some files in my older posts may not play or download. However, irrespective of this problem I will try to continue posting more songs. Thanks for your patience.

Four Songs : my Choice 4

Yet another installment of a few songs of my choice :

Channulal Mishra - Raga Maru Bihag :  (Download)



Kaushiki Chakrabarty - Raga Pilu Thumri :  (Download)





Rashid Khan - Raga Jaijaiwanti :  (Download)



Sawani Shende - Raga Durga :  (Download)



.. more songs of my Choice »

QUIZ : Give me the names of the male and female singers and the name of the Album/Film, and I will send you this rare song + a bestseller e-book (in Microsoft Reader .lit format) by email. Answer the questions in the comments to this post, and please don’t forget to mention your email address.

Quiz Song : 4



Comments are welcome.

Four Songs : my Choice 3

Once again I am posting a few songs of my choice, this time all in Raga Khamaj. For the uninitiated, Raga Khamaj is a late evening Raga usually sung in the light Thumri style.

A Kanan - Nindiya Na Jagao :  (Download)



Dinkar Kaikini - Katariya Na Maro :  (Download)





Shobha Gurtu - Chhabi Dikhla Ja :  (Download)



Bidur Mallik - Nazariya Lag Jayegi :  (Download)



more Songs of My Choice »

QUIZ : Give me the names of the male and female singers and the name of the Album/Film, and I will send you this rare song + a bestseller e-book (in Microsoft Reader .lit format) by email. Answer the questions in the comments to this post, and please don't forget to mention your email address.

Quiz Song : 2



P.S : Did anyone notice the new addition in the 'WHAT'S HOT' section of the sidebar. I just finished compiling a book out of posts on the now 'infamous' 'FAKE IPL PLAYER' blog (I love compiling e-books), and thought to share it with you. It's insanely hilarious. You must have Microsoft Reader installed to be able to read it.

Comments are welcome.

Four Songs : my Choice 2

One more edition of some songs of my choice. I am again, not giving you the download links due to bandwidth restrictions. Playing the songs and then downloading them, doubles the bandwidth usage. In these times of economic recession, this would not be a wise thing to do. Already too many file hosting sites are tottering with frequent outages. Save all forms of energy, seems to be the mantra of the day. You may however, fish out the songs from the Internet Explorer Cache after playing them to their full length.

Latafat Hussain Khan - Patdipki :  (Download)



Fateh Ali Khan - Jaunpuri :  (Download)





Parween Sultana - Malkauns :  (Download)



Kumar Gandharva - Dhanbasanti :  (Download)



more Songs of My Choice »

Comments are welcome.

Flash ! : Download links now added due to overwhelming requests.

Four Songs : my Choice

Here are a few songs of my choice :

Amir Khan - Raga Jog - O Balma Ab Ghar Aa :  (Download)



Rashid Khan - Raga Des - Karam Kar Deeje :  (Download)





Habib Wali Mohammad - Tani Dheere Se Bol :  (Download)



Mohammad Bakhsh - Thumri Khamaj - Rain Andheri :  (Download)



Feedback is welcome !!