Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia - Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia

Performers:

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia - bansuri

Sukhvinder Singh Namdhari - tabla

Uma Mehta and Krishna Joshi - tanpura

Hariprasad Chaurasia is one of India's most famous musicians, having in recent years become as much part of concerts and recordings in the West as in India. He was born in 1938 in Allahabad, the son of a wrestler. He was inspired by the flute playing of Prasana Bholanath at the age of twelve and began learning with him. Later he learnt from Annapurna Devi, daughter of the great Allaudin Khan, who taught through the medium of the voice. The vocal priority is important for all instruments of Indian music, but the shared reliance on the breath makes it particularly relevant to the flute. The North Indian flute, known as bansuri (which highlights the fact that it is made from bamboo), is a relative newcomer to the classical concert, and owes its acceptance to Pannalal Ghosh (1911-1960). That master showed how the instrument, so simple in construction, is capable of the most delicate nuances as well as the most dazzling displays of agility. Hariprasad Chaurasia has developed all kinds of new techniques to keep his instrument at the forefront of Indian music. He has made recordings and concert appearances all over the world, as a soloist, with other Indian musicians, most notably with the santur maestro Shivkumar Sharma, and in collaborations with such Western musicians as John McLaughlin and Jan Garbarek.

This recording is from the second half of a recital given in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London on 28 April 1996. It is customary to follow the opening item of a concert with music in a lighter mood, as is evident throughout this recording. By happy coincidence, or perhaps as a deliberate ploy, Hariprasad Chaurasia chose two ragas which can be related not only through their mood and time of performance but also through their predominantly pentatonic structure and actual names. Durga is one of the names of the wife of the lord Shiva. (liner notes)

Tracklisting:

1. Raga Durgawati: Alap {6:50}

2. Raga Durgawati: Gat in teen tal {36:16}

3. Raga Durgawati: Drut gat in teental {14:15}

4. Raga Mishra Shivaranjani: Alap {3:10}

5. Raga Mishra Shivaranjani: Dhun in dadra tal {10:43}

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