Not frozen by tradition, Mashkoor Khan seeks cross-fertilization at Rubin
BY JYOTIRMOYDATTA



The purest sounds of ancient ragas, rendered byUstad Mashkoor Ali Khan, heir to one of India's greatest classical music gharanas, will intermingle with composer-pianist Michael Harrison's just intonations at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York on June 5.Khan is rare in that he not only preserves in his enormous musical memory the heritage of the Kirana Gharana, but seeks to enlarge and deepen it through interaction with other traditions.

He is not just a keeper of his treasures, but seeks to expand those. As a guru at Sangeet Research Academy in Kolkata, he carries on the tradition of passing his heritage to disciples. He also undertakes visits to this country for exchanges like the one at the Rubin.

Khan is a direct descendant of the great Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan, the founders of the famous Kirana lineage. His father, the great sarangi player Shakoor Khan, was the grand nephew of Bande Ali, Beenkar, while Mehboob Baksh Khan and Aajiz Pia were his great-grandfathers.

He was initiated into music and trained by his father for 15 years. After his father's demise, he joined the academy in Kolkata, as a scholar, to polish and hone his undiluted style of Kirana gayakee (singing).

Now, as a guru at the Kolkata academy and the American Academy of Indian Classical Music, he nurtures numerous vocalists and scholars. His recitals reveal great imagination and vocal agility. An erudite musician, he possesses a keen understanding of the characteristic styles of Kirana gayakee.

With his celebrated lineage, Khan has inherited a veritable treasure trove of "bandishes" (compositions) and an insight into rare ragas that few musicians can boast of. A true heir of his renowned forefathers, he still continues to collect rare compositions with passion.

Harrison has studied and performed Indian classical music for 30 years. His "Revelation: Music in Pure Intonation" (Cantaloupe Music) was chosen by The New YorkTimes, The Boston Globe and Time Out New York as one of the Best Classical Recordings of 2007. This season's highlights include solo performances at Spoleto Festival USA, Santa FeNew Music, Music in the Morning in Vancouver, the première of "Tone Clouds" at the Other Minds Festival in San Francisco (just intonation piano and string quartet) with Del Sol Quartet and singing with Terry Riley, the Kronos Quartet and a host of greats at Carnegie Hall.

He will be featured on the Mile High Voltage Festival in Denver at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts in 2010.

Khan and Harrison will be accompanied by emerging tabla player Dibyarka Chatterjee, son of Pandit Samir Chatterjee of New York.

Credit: Desitalk.com