Valuable recording
B. Puri | Mehrauli, Delhi | 11/13/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"A shard of pottery from Mesopotamia is more valuable than the most expensive Wedgewood! How can we determine if Shamsuddin is following a tradition or is simply on his own. In todays Age of Information, fortunately, this is easy to determine. Shamsuddin's Puriya may be compared with short recordings of his father Muhammad Khan Faridi (also in Puriya). The resemblance is obvious. Another beenkar who plays in this style is Pandit Hindraj Divekar of Pune. To declare that one needs to listen to alaps by "real masters" like Asad Ali and Baha ud Din is to simply make a great show of one's ignorance. Baha ud din was not even born or probably was a toddler when Shamsuddin was in his prime. A comparison with old recordings of Sadiq Ali Khan (Asad Ali's father) shows that there is absolutely no resemblance between Asad Ali's playing and his father's. It is Asad Ali who is the maverick! You may or may not like one style or another, these are personal preferences after all, but you cannot declare a piece of traditional music to be untraditional simply because you were not exposed to the relevant tradition in the first place!!
Therefore...give me a single "boing" and I will give you the complete recorded works of all other living Beenkars! Warning: this music is NOT for beginners and you need a REALLY open mind for this. Some say that if we heard Tansen today maybe we will find his singing strange and unbearable."
Not just a musican - not just music !!
gambo_s_s | 06/21/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It took a decade for this music to be finally edited and released.This is the culmination of a really extraordinary sequence of events.Shamsuddin Faridi is not another run -of - the- mill musician trying to make a mark in the music scene and it is quite likely that he would never have been recorded were it not for the foresight of true connoisseurs like Lyle Wachovsky of India Archives.
Shamsuddin is a Sufi who spends most of his time with the fakirs and dervishes at the Dargahs (mausolems, tombs) of medieval Indian Sufi saints like Shaik Kalimuddin and Baba Qutubuddin Bhaktiar Kaki in Delhi.
This music is not being played for entertainment. This is a personal meditation session to which the listener is invited. The Raga Puriya is presented at its purest form but in a context which is very far removed from any kind of Hindustani instrumental music in vogue today. This is the Rudra Veena played in the style of Bande Ali Khan the legendary Beenkar of Indore.
Do not look for complicated phraseology in this music. The Alap is based on sounds. The number of different kind of sounds which this Beenkar is able to coax from the Been is mind blowing. It is like a craft which has been heard about and believed to be lost but has been found again. The jhala transcends most of the standards set by any recorded Hindustani musican dead or alive.
Shamsuddin is extremely moody and his music depends crucially on his state of mind. This is a recording from a session when he was completely switched on !! Technically this is a marvel, the sound is fierce and captivating. If you want your mind to be blown apart - this is the music for you."
Music of the Past
S. D. Dand | San Diego County | 04/28/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This music is not for fun and game crowd. This is a piece of music fast disappearing from the Indian stage. It was not meant for commercial success or number of CDs sold. Raga Puriya rendered here is unlikely to be sung or played in this fashion by anyone else. Shamsuddin Khan's playing is true to the character of the Raga and unconcerned about entertaining or pleasing his audience. His technique is also a thing of the past and unconcerned about blending in new tricks to embellish his music. In fifty more years, there will be no such music to be heard as commercial success takes over as the only criteria. Only other musician I heard play like this was his father, Mohammed Khan Faridi, when I heard him at the age of ten!"
Track Listings (2) - Disc #1