1) Identify the great hindusthani musician and the type of composition being sung. http://vocaroo.com/i/s1daHj2XuJAV
Answer :
This great maestro is Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saheb.
Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saheb hailed from a family of musicians who followed the Kasur Patiala gharana. He was very well known for his effortless singing in 3 octaves with a very mellifluous and lilting voice. The intricate and fast phrases that he wove was sheer magic and was compared to the silver filigree jewellery. This veteran popularised khayals and thumris.
This maestro has been a great source of inspiration to not only his peers, but also to a lot of Carnatic musicians of the past who lived during his times and continues to inspire the current generation of musicians. These musicians have imbibed a lot of ideas from his music especially with ragas like peelu, sindhu bhairavi, etc.
Thumri is belongs to the lighter genre and concentrates more on the composition rather than the unfolding of a raga. The gait is very lilting and the theme is shringara/bhakti. It’s a type of composition which be compared as a parallel to the “Javali” compositions in Carnatic music.
This great maestro’s birth and death anniversary incidentally fall during the month of April and Sukrtam pays homage to this veteran musician.
2) Identify this little pink bud, blessed by HH Sri Sathya Sai Baba, who has now blossomed into a beautiful lotus spreading the fragrance of Carnatic music everywhere. *
Answer :
The child in the pink frock is none other than Padmabhushan Awardee Sangeetha Kalanidhi Smt. Sudha Raghunathan.
Smt. Sudha Raghunathan is one of the most successful and sought after performers who has had a glorious career for more than 3 decades and still continues to perform with the same vigor and enthusiasm even today. She is one of the prime disciples of Sangeetha Kalanidhi Dr. ML Vasanthakumari and has carved a unique style for herself. She has performed extensively all around the globe and has collaborated with a lot of international musicians. She is known for her amazing stamina while performing and has done record breaking concerts for as long as 6hrs at a stretch. She is known to be extremely cordial to all the musicians, irrespective of their age and is appreciative of young talents.
Samudhaaya Foundation, an organisation dedicated to the service of the society, has been spearheaded by Smt Sudha Ragunathan.
This great lady celebrated her birthday on April 30th and Sukrtam wishes her many more happy returns of the day.
3) “I’m a musical genre born around the 19th century in the southern part of United States of America. I evolved from my predecessor – “ragtime”. Who am i?” *
Answer :
The genre of music is “Jazz”.
Jazz is a music genre that originated from African American communities of New Orleans in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It spans a period of over a hundred years, encompassing a very wide range of music, making it difficult to define. This genre makes heavy use of improvisation, polyrhythms, syncopation and the swing note, as well as aspects of European harmony, American popular music, the brass band tradition, and African musical elements such as blue notes and African-American styles such as ragtime. Different cultures have contributed their own experience and styles to the art form as well. Intellectuals around the world have hailed jazz as “one of America’s original art forms”
April 30th being “International Jazz Day” Sukrtam pays homage to all the great musicians who have contributed to the growth of this wonderful genre of music.