Wasifuddin Dagar dhrupad vocal · Mohan Shyam
Sharma pakhawaj
accompanied by two tanpuras
20-page booklet: Interview by Ira Landgarten
Rag BIHAG
[1] alap 30:25 [2] jor 19:42 [3] chautal 23:59
total time 74:08
DDD
UPC: 7044820 223 2 0
Ustad F. Wasifuddin Dagar is the son and nephew of the Younger Dagar Brothers, Ustad N. Faiyazuddin and N. Zahiruddin Dagar, his father and uncle respectively; and nephew of the Senior Dagar Brothers, Moinuddin and Aminuddin Dagar. He started his career at an early age as a soloist and also performed with his uncle in jugalbandi until 1994, and in solo later on, after the latter's passing away. He is the only heir and direct descendant in the Dagar family to perpetuate, in the twentieth generation, the family vocal style of Dhrupad singing. He took over the responsibility of preserving and disseminating dhrupad as the President of the Dhrupad Society of Delhi.
This CD was recorded at a World Music Institute concert in Washington Square Church, New York City, during Wasifuddin's first North American tour in the spring of 2000.
From the booklet interview, about Rag Bihag: It's one of the prachalit raags, which are commonly performed by almost everyone. This is an evening raag, you can say a late evening raag, sung sometime between evening and night. The rasa [mood] of this raag is towards pathos a little bit, but it has its different way of presentation which brings it later to a joyous mood. Its combination of both romance and yearning; it's the viewpoints which make it different. The raag has a big capacity; every note has a good area to discover because in some raags you have to repeat a few notes again and again. Of course, in every raag we repeat the notes again and again but there are some raags whose notes have so much depth that you can stay there like you are going on a big steamer. You are going on a big ship and Wrst you have a halt, like you embarked from somewhere then you had a halt in Mauritius and then in Saudi Arabia, and then you reached here. There are two madhyams which makes it more special -- tivra [sharp] and shuddh [natural] -- which makes for a floating way of coming down.
Booklet (Adobe Acrobat format)
Interview
by Ira Landgarten from booklet
Credits
Wordings (Bandish lyrics)
Reviews of Washington Square Church concert, New York, May
17 2000:
Jon Pareles, The
New York Times (appeared in May 22 issue)
Ira Landgarten, sonicnet.com (if sonicnet link fails see it
here).
Washington Post review
by Mark Jenkins
