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The British Raj (1857-1947 AD)
This period from 1857 to 1947, saw the establishment of various famous Gharanas in the north and emergence of Madras as the capital of Carnatic music in the south. Recorded music made its appearance. Music of the film world became the popular form of music. Hindustani music was also resurrected from khotis and was accorded social acceptance. The era also saw introduction of many European instruments to India like Violin and Harmonium, which have become indispensable instruments in Carnatic and Hindustani vocal recitals, respectively. Several related forms of Hindustani developed - Tumri, Tappa and Tarana.
The British, more specifically East India Company, started conquest of India with the battle of Plassy in 1757. For the next hundred years they fought numerous battles for political power, both with Indian kings and other European powers. With the fall of Tipu Sultan in 1799, most of Indian kings were subservient to British. British also ruled many areas (like Bombay, Calcutta and Madras) directly. Many Indian kings regrouped and waged a final decisive battle in 1857, in which they were completely defeated.
The war of 1857 had far reaching effects. British Govt took over the administration and the army from the East India Company. From then on British Viceroys would govern India. Delhi came under the direct rule of British, finally ending 300 years of Mughal rule.
The British rulers had no interest in Indian music. But large areas of India were still under various India kings, called princely states. The princely states were generally independent in local matters but had to pay heavy taxes to the British empire. They were under constant watch of the British representative in their states. But they had enough resources to support artists and musicians in their courts. They also enjoyed political stability and were free from worries of war, making it possible for most of the kings and aristocracy to lead a life of leisure, which was very conducive to growth of arts and music.
Gwalior And Other Vocal Gharanas
Gwalior was ruled by Scindia (Maratha) rulers from 1726 till independence. But after 1794 they were a princely state under the British. Under their patronage Gwalior gharana, the oldest Khayal Gharana flourished. Though some trace the gharana all the way to Gwalior's most famous musician, Mian Tansen, the Khayal Gharana started there in 18th century by Ustad Natthan Pir Baksh, who is said to be a direct descendant of Sadarang and Adarang.
Most of the Khayal Gharana's are offshoots of this Gharana. Pir Baksh's grand sons Hassu, Haddu and Natthu Khan had great impact on the gharana and are considered to be the most important musicians of the Gharana and by some to be the real founds of it. They had a large number of disciples like Rehmat Khan, Baba Dikshit, Masurekar Buva, Shankar Pandit and Eknath Pandit, Rajabhaiyya Poochhwaie, Ramkrishnabuva Vaze, Balkrishnabuva Ichalkaranjikar, Vasudevbuva Joshi and Devjibuva Paranjape, who spread the gharana in various parts of the sub-continent. Some of them who were Maharashtra brahmins established the Gharana in Maharashtra, and their disciples like Chaturpandit Bhatkhande, V.D. Pulaskar et al liberated hindustani music from the clutch of Gharana's throwing it open to public by starting a music school, Gandharva Mahavidhyalaya. They also cut it off from the court-courtesan linkage and made it a socially acceptable and gave it almost religious flavor (like in Carnatik). Gwalior gharana is still a popular gharana with several exponents.
There are some who contend that Agra Gharana was started by Dhrupad singer Haji Sujaan Khan, who was in the court of Emperor Akbar and was a contemporary of Tansen. But it is generally accepted that one of the disciples of Natthan Pir Baksh, Gagge Khuda Baksh started the Agra Gharana. His great great grandson, Fayyaz Khan (1886-1950) remains the most outstanding exponent of this gharana and is known as Aftab-I-mausiqui. Today, the musicians of the Agra gharana have dispersed throughout northern India and though the gharana is very alive, its links with Agra are severed.
However, Vamanrao Deshpande's description of the Agra gharana speaks of its enduring link to the medieval world. "Its style," he writes, "reminds one of the rugged architectural construction of a medieval fortress with its gigantic walls, ramparts and turrets. Its successive taans remind us of speedily advancing armies striking hard at their targets, its bol taans of rapid gunfire. It captivates rather than delights." One of the only singers still singing pure Agra style is Purnima Sen. (Makar-Purnima Sen) The founder of Sahaswan-Rampur gharana is Ustad Inayat Hussain Khan (1849-1919), son-in-law of Haddu Khan of the Gwalior gharana. Inayat Hussain Khan was born in Sahaswan and lived his professional life in
Rampur was an important centre of dhrupad singing, and together with the fact of Haddu Khan's teaching, there are definite influences of dhrupad, and the Gwalior gharana. Inayat Hussain Khan's two sons-in-law Mushtaque Hussain Khan and Nissar Hussain Khan continued the tradition.
Modern exponents of the gharana Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan have added some new dimensions in the style to make it more complete. He also initiated the use of sargams popularized by Kirana and Patiala exponents. In keeping with the other broad characteristics and specialties of the gharana, Ghulam Mustafa introduced slow melodic elaboration or vistar and in the vilambit khayal and also sang it in the slower tempo preferred by most singers in the final quarter of the 20th century. The gharana is now represented by Ustad Rashid Khan.
Jaipur-Atauli gharana did not branch off of Gwalior gharana. Ustad Natthu Khan's ancestors migrated to the court of Jaipur from Atruali (near Aligarh in U.P.). He was a contemporary of Sadarang-Adarang, the originators of Khayal. His grand son Ehmat Khan was a renowned singer and the court musician of Uniyara. His son was Alladiya Khan who was to later establish the Jaipur-Atauli Gharana. But Alladiya was trained by uncle Jehangir khan, since Ehmat Khan passed away while Alladiya was still 14. Jehangir Khan was an expert in both Khayal and Dhrupad, which shows that even in 19th century Dhrupad was slowly making way for Khayal. Alladiya was trained in both Dhrupad and Khayal and finally settled down on the court of Kolhapur kings. Alladiya modified the Khayal style by his own inventions. The swaras were governed by the laya in a sophisticated way and became the medium of his musical expression which then attained a IiIt and pulsating rhythm characteristic of style. Also the 'tedhi' or the complex 'phirat' boltaans and the ingenious and unexpected ways of approaching the 'sama' of the rhythmic cycle are unique to the gharana. In the tradition of the Jaipur gharana the khayal is always conceived and presented as a grand architectural design which is replete with intricate and well-crafted imagery. Alladiya trained quite a few experts like Kesarbai Kerkar, Moghubai Kurdikar, Sushila Rani Patel and Gulubhai Jasdanwala. His sons Ustad Manji Khan and Ustad Bhurjl Khan also trained a few disciples like Mallikarjun Mansur.
Jaipur Gharana is represented by kishori Amonkar, Ashwini Bhide, Padma Tralwalkar, Shruti Sadolikar Katkar and others.
Patiala Gharana is considered a branch of both Gwalior and Delhi gharanas. Mian Kaalu of Delhi gharana, trained his son Ustad Ali Bux Jamail and his friend Ustad Fateh Ali (the famous Ali-a-Fattu). They received training from Haddu - Hassu of Gwalior too. This helped them to develop a unique gayaki of their own. Together, Ali Bux and Fateh Ali made a wonderful combination and presided at the Patiala darbar. Ali Bux Khan was one of their disciples and was the father and guru of the most famous Patiala exponent of 20th century, Ustad Bade Ghulam Khan. Kale Khan Kesarwale was another disciple of Ali-a-Fattu, who trained his nephew and another great master Barkat Ali Khan. Ustad Munawar Ali Khan is the disciple and heir to the legacy of Ustad Bade Ghulam Khan. Pandit Ajoy Chakravarty, the disciple of Ustad Munawar Ali Khan represents the Gharana today.
Kirana Gharana was started by Khan Sahab Abdul Karim Khan (1872-1937). Kirana is the birth place of the Ustad, and situated near Kurukshetra. Ustad Karim Khan served as a musician at the Baroda and the Mysore courts and had a tremendous influence on the music of western India. This perhaps explains the influence of Carnatic music on Kirana Gharana. His own somewhat nasal voice led him to adopt the Carnatic style for singing the saptak. Abdul Karim Khan's most important disciple was Pt Sawai Gandharva, who made it famous in the north Karnataka and Maharashtra regions. There are several fine exponents of this gharana today, including Pt Bhimsen Joshi, Gangubai Hangal and Prabha Atre.
Bhendi Bazaar Gharana was founded by three brothers Chajju Khan, Ustad Nazir Khan and Ustad Khadim Hussain Khan, towards the last decade of the 19th century in the Bhendi Bazar area of Bombay. The brothers who were from Uttar Pradesh, trained under their father Dilawar Hussain Khan as well as Ustad Inayat Hussain Khan of the Sahaswan Gharana. Renowned exponent of this gharana was Ustad Aman Ali Khan the guru of Lata Mangeshkar.
Mewati Gharana was founded by Ghagge Nazir Khan who hailed from Mewat but was employed by the Nepal Rana and was influenced by Haddu-Hassu Khan of Gwalior. Ghagge Nazir Khan had two main disciples Nathulal and Chimanlal. Nathulal's nephew was Pandit Motiram whose son is the renowned artist Pandit Jasraj, the current leading light of the Gharana. Pandit Jasraj learnt from his elder brother Pandit Maniram. Stylistically, today's Mewati gharana has evolved from that of Ghagge Nazir Khan and includes Merkhand and Murchannas both of which are direct influences of Kirana and Bhendi Bazar respectively.
Development of Thumri
The thumri is said to have originated in the court of Wajid Ali Shah (1822-1887, ruled 1847-1857) of Lucknow in the mid-nineteenth century. At that time it was presented in medium or fast tempos using taals like rupak and ek taal. It is believed that the thumris that arose at that time were closely allied to the khayal and originated as melodies to accompany dances presented by courtesans or tawaifs in the Mughal courts. The themes of the thumri are essentially romantic and based on the 'shringar rasa'. The compositions were written in the dialect Braj-Bhasha, spoken in the Agra-Mathura regions of the Uttar Pradesh. On account its lyrical and lilting quality the thumri is often rendered in lighter ragas like Piloo, Pahadi or Kafi.
At the beginning of 20th century thumri lost much of its seductive romantic content and became a purer form of music with an emphasis on its aesthetic features as part of the discipline of classical music. Also was also taken up by male singers especially vocalists known for their khayal renditions like Ustad Abdul Karim Khan and Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan who sang their thumris in the Punjab Ang. With the decline of Lucknowi Thumri, Benaras gharana with its 'Purab ang gayaki' of the thumri gained prominence. Benaras Gharana produced such stalwarts as Siddeshwari Devi, Begum Akhtar, Rasoolan Bai and Girija Devi. The modern classical vocalists usually conclude their pure classical performances with a thumri rendered in a wonderfully light Mishra Bhairavi or Piloo.
Thumri has several varieties such as the Kajri sung during the monsoon, the Hori sung during the colorful festival of Holi and other harvest melodies such as the Chaiti, Saawan, Jhoola etc
Development of Ghazal
Ghazal as a literary form evolved in Persia in 10th century. The poetic form was brought to India by the Muslim rulers. At first, most of the ghazals were written in Persian. Urdu as the preferred language of Ghazals first emerged in the courts of southern muslim rulers of Golconda and Bijapur in the 17th century by poets like Wali Mohammed Wali (1667 - 1707)
By 18th century Urdu poetry was being in the north as well by poets like Meer Taqi Meer (1722 - 1810). 19th century was the golden age of Ghazal poetry in Delhi with poets like Mirza Ghalib (1797-1869) , Zauq, Ibrahim (1789 - 1854) and Momin Khan Momin (1800 - 1851) .
Ghazal as a musical form was probably an offshoot of light classical forms like Thumri. Ghazal, like Thumri, probably became associated the courtesan. The courtesans, known as tawaif were educated in many forms of fine arts like music, dance and poetry. Many of them were poets themselves and probably started singing the Ghazals in the same way Thumri's were sung for the benefit of their Muslim masters, who were connoisseurs of Urdu Poetry. Like Thumri's, Ghazals are based on romantic lyrics and thus the Thumri style of singing was ideally suited to sing Ghazals as well.
Ghazals were also set to particular Raags and formed a part of light classical music. Not surprisingly, most well known Ghazal singers of 19th and 20th centuries were Thumri exponents as well like Begum Akhar and Barkat Ali Khan. Even Khayal singers like Ustad Abdul Karim Khan and Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan occassionally sang ghazals. In the later part of 20th century Ghazal went through dramatic changes, finally losing much of its classical roots and imitating popular film songs in style.
Recorded Music
Though the first recording was done by Edison in 1877, it was Emile Berliner 1887 invention of a flat Gramophone that eventually won commercially. In 1897 Gramaphone Company began trading in London, intending to establish a European market for the gramophone and its flat disc records which Emile Berliner had invented. In 1900 the company bought a painting of Nipper the dog listening to a gramophone, appropriately called His Master's Voice. Gramaphone Company came to be known as HMV for that reason. This was to become the famous logo of Gramaphone company and also that Emile Berliner's company Victor in the US. Emile Berliner bought the logo for use in US and Canada. Not soon after, recorded music came to India.
Gramophone Company of India, popularly known as HMV, was formed in Calcutta in 1902. The first Indian recording by Gramaphone Company professionals was made in the same year, 1902. One of the first artists to record was GAUHAR Jan of Calcutta (1875-1930), who was an accomplished singer, dancer and Urdu poet. She was a renowned Thumri singer of the time and finally settled down in the Mysore court before her death in 1930. She was perhaps the first singer to have become famous because of her recordings.
The recordings were sent out to Hanover, USA where the records were pressed and sent back. This continued till 1908, when The Dum Dum factory of the Gramophone Company of India. The records were 78 rpm and had just a few minutes capacity (10 inch discs were 4 minutes long). That meant only short songs could be recorded, not the long Raaga expositions. This was the case till 33 1/3 rpm LP was recorded in 1948, with capacity of 23 minutes per side.
Mysore - The Model State
After the fall of Tippu Sultan, Mysore was restored to the Wodeyar family but the kingdom was put under British protection. Krishnaraja Wodeyar III (1799 to 1866) shifted the capital from Srirangapatna to Mysore. Under his rule, Mysore became a great centre of arts. Many great musicians came and lived in Mysore during this time. Adiayappayya's grandson through his younger son Veena Seshayya, came to Mysore at the invitation of Dewan Purnayya. He taught music to the Maharaja who presented him with a golden veena.
It was during the reign of Krishnaraja Wodeyar III that such famous musicians as veena Sambayya, veena Anantha Subbayya, veena Chikkaramappa, veena Dodda Subbaraya, the great vocalist ``Janjaa maaruta'' (cyclone) Subbayya, Syama Sastri's disciple Appukuttan Nattuvanar, Tyagaraja's disciple Lalgudi Rama Iyer, his sons Guruswami Iyer and Radhakrishna Iyer, Mysore Sadasiva Rao, and Thatchur Singarachar all were Asthana vidwans.
Music recitals were a regular feature of the Mysore Court especially during festivals like Dasara and Sivaratri. During this time a number of musical treatises like ``Swara Choodamani'' Sri Taswa nidhi, and Bharatha Saara Sangraha were published.
Mysore Wodeyars thought of themselves as the cultural inheritors Vijaynagar empire. Very early on they started celebrating NavaRathri (Dussera) festivals, taking the tradition over from VijayNagar kings. Mysore kings made it a practice to conduct daily evening concerts during Dussera. They invited the best artists from all over India. Mysore in those years became the center of princely support to artists, of all gharanas and both traditions - Carnatic and Hindustani. It became a center where artists of various backgrounds met, exchanged notes and influenced each other in subtle ways.
Chamaraja Wodeyar (1866 to 1902) carried on the traditions followed by his predecessor Krishnaraja Wodeyar III. It was again during the reign of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV (1902 to 1940) that music rose to great heights. The legendary Veena Seshanna, Sri Bidaram Krishnappa, Sri Vasudevacharya and Sri Muthiah Bhagavathar, who were all great composers adorned the court. It was also during this time that such famous Karnataka Sangeetha musicians as Veena Dhanammal, Ariyakkudi Ramanuja Iyengar and Tiger Varadachariar and Hindustani musicians like Abdul Karim Khan regularly performed at the Mysore Court. Jayachamaraja Wodeyar was the last of the Mysore rulers. He was himself a composer of merit.
Madras - The New Center
Madras started as a small fishing village until the British took it to build a fort, St George, in 1639. In 1653 it became the seat of British power in the south and capital of Madras presidency. Just like the other cities built by British, Bombay and Calcutta, it became the center of learning and later of music.
Starting with early 20th century, Madras started to become as important as Tanjavur to Carnatic music. Many of the artists started moving to Madras attracted by the new patrons of music - the beaurocracy of Madras presidency. In 1927, on the sidelines of All India conference of the Indian National Congress, All India Music conference was held in Madras.
At this time it was decided to start a music academy in madras to promote classical music. The Academy was formally inaugurated on the 18th of August, 1928 (The Inauguration), though the first music festival was held in 1927, December. The festival has been held in December every year since then. The festival became an important vehicle for the development of Carnatic music. Apart from established masters, the festival allowed new artists to show off their talents and many masters of 20th century started off in these festivals.
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