Ustad Amir Khan

Ustad Amir Khan (August 15, 1912–February 13, 1974) is considered one of the most influential figures in Hindustani classical music and the founder of the Indore Gharana.

Amir Khan was born in a family of musicians in Indore, India. His father, Shahmir Khan, a sarangi and veena player of the Bhendibazaar gharana, served at the court of the Holkars of Indore. His grandfather was a singer in the court of Bahadurshah Zafar.

Ustad Amir Khan was initially trained in the sarangi by his father. However, seeing his interest in vocal music, his father gradually devoted more time to vocal training, focusing on the Merukhand technique. Exposed to various styles, Amir Khan’s musical training went on through his childhood.

He moved to Bombay in 1934, and there he gave a few concerts and cut about half a dozen 78-rpm records. Initially he was not well received. Khan Sahab lived for some time in Delhi and Calcutta, but after the partition of India he moved back to Bombay.

He is said to have favored a swara-oriented and alap-dominated style, and his layakari was generally subtle. His performances had an understated elegance, reverence, restrained passion and did not emphasize showmanship that both moved and awed listeners.

With his pen name, Sur Rang, he has left several compositions. Many stalwarts of Hindustani classical music are influenced by Ustad Amir Khan.

What is a Raga?

There is a saying in Sanskrit, "ranjayati iti raagah" - that which colours the mind is the Raga. A Raga is the melodic framework, established by tradition or born and inspired in the spirit of a master-musician. The beauty of a Raga leads the listener to a serene and peaceful frame of mind and brings him pure joy.

Samaya: There is a tradition of rendering a Raga within a time-frame (samaya), because Ragas have hours and sometimes seasons prescribed to them. For example, Yaman is an evening Raga, Darbari is rendered at night, Todi, in the morning and Brindavani Sarang in the afternoon. It is believed that to make the most of the tones and the notes, to be most creative with the given sounds of a Raga, the time-laws of the Raga help. In fact, most musicians would say that it is a must to follow this. Keeping the time in mind is believed to provide the right psycho-physical ambiance for original creation. Or, we can also say, that time has its occult impact on us, to the artist and the listener, and we tune ourselves with greater ease to a certain level of vibration and awareness at certain times.

Dhyana: It is said that each Raga has a dhyana, a meditative presence, associated with it. It is not difficult to accept that Ragas have life in them. Or, for those who think deeper, they can well understand if we say that every Raga has a soul, a life and a journey. A Raga is eternally becoming, blossoming out into new vivid forms through the musician.