| This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.Pandit Jasraj is a famous Indian Classical vocalist, and a foremost exponent of Hindustani classical music and Mewati Gharana.Born in 1930 in Hissar, Haryana to a musical family.He was awarded India second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibushan in 2000.Shantaram), have a son, Sharang Dev, and a daughter, Durga Jasraj, a Bollywood actress.Lalit are Jasrajji's nephews.Earlier life and musical training
Born on 28 January, 1930, his family is well known for singing in Mewati Gharana style.He was initiated into vocal music by his father Pandit Motiramji.But at the age of 14, unhappy with the treatment of an accompanying artist, Jasraj left and vowed not to cut his hair until he had learned to sing.Pandit Jasraj is blessed with a rich, soul stirring and sonorous voice, traversing effortlessly across all the three and a half octaves.His vocalizing in perfect diction, clarity and extreme melodiousness.He also did an extensive research in Haveli Sangeet.Often, it is said that great artists fail to pass on their craft to the next generation.However, Pandit Jasraj has a large number of students and has thus ensured longevity for his genre, and has Sanjeev Abhyankar as heir apparent of the Mewati Gharana.Discography
Upasana (2007))
Tapasya Vol.This page was last modified 15:50, 12 December 2007.All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.See Copyrights for details.Mewati Gharana, along with the rich cultural traditions and values of India.United States with pride and prestige in various activities and thus, be the true ambassadors for their own heritage.PJIM is the name of a family, a tradition.Gurukul, the Mewati Gurukul.Born it Hissar, in Haryana State, in 1930, Pandit Jasraj is the
youngest son of Pandit Motiram and grandson of Pandit Jyotiram,
acclaimed as a pioneer of what is known as the Mewati gharana.His alaps are
deeply communicative while his boltaans speak of his fecund
imagination.To this he adds his playful sargams and sprightly taans.Several titles and awards have come to Panditji at the state and
national levels, besides a string of accolades from the erstwhile
princely patrons.Sangeet Martand", Padma
Bhushan and the Maharashtra Rajya Gourav Puraskar.He
has toured western countries on his musical mission and has had his
overseas audience under his spell.Equally numerous are his indirect disciples, who have the
maestro as their role model in their musical career.The Contemporary doyen of North Indian Classical Vocal Music, Pandit Jasraj needs very little introduction.Jasraj, with just the seven notes as his inheritance from his departed father, stepped out into the cold world of harsh realities.Born into a family that has given to Indian music four generations of outstanding musicians, the Mewati maestro, Pandit Jasraj had his initial grooming in music under his father, the Late Pandit Moti Ram ji.He then underwent intensive training under his elder brother and guru, the late Pandit Mani Ram ji.His music has a very subline emotional quality that touches the soul of the listner.He has been guided in this spiritual guru, Late Maharana Shri Jaywant Singhji of Sanand, another doyen of the Mewati gharana.However, Pandit Jasraj has a large student following and has thus ensured longevity for his style of singing.Panditji has a large and devoted following throughout the world.His web site, a gift from his disciples, features testimonies, photos and a biography.This cassette was recorded in 1980 and features performances more typical of his earlier classical period.All of the songs are in variations of the raga Todi.Accompanying Pandit Jasraj are Appa Jalgaonkar on harmonium and Nizamuddin Khan on tablas.Complete song details are available in a text file.The best source of Indian classical music in the United States and Canada that I know of is Khazana.For recommendations, comments or questions, email me.Indian instrumentalists of our time, and I believe he surpasses all other
vocalists.New York City from my home in Los Angeles during
the time I was writing these introductory notes in August 2001.In the article, the owner of the pizza restaurant explained
how the secret of great pizza was the weather.Rather, their exact proportions must be determined by the moisture
or dryness in the air at the moment the pizza is being made.Art of Raga is one of the most sophisticated and rarefied artistic endeavors
in human history.Ragas defy simple and easy definitions, and are for most a
developed taste.Ragas are timeless, individual
melodic jewels possessing spiritual resonance, and unlimited developmental potential.Pandit Jasraj came to California to give two benefit concerts for the
earthquake victims of Gujarat.Gujarat earthquake sponsored by
5H, The International Association for Human Values.Puriya Dhanashri, Shankara, and a bhajan based on Mishra Kafi, the
music lifted off the stage, and headed out of the auditorium towards the stars.God, the human voice, and that seems to give him almost unlimited
musical powers.Pandit Jasraj was in the center garbed in golden silk, strumming his swaramandala.Mukesh Desai, and Subha Srinivasan and Kalpana Banerjee
all strumming tanpuras like ocean waves upon the shore.Singh home, Pandit Jasraj gave me a warm welcome, and invited
me to sit beside him while he finished watching a Hindi film.It was a musical comedy, and provoked much laughter from Panditji.Pandit Jasraj was curious to hear my music.Jaunpuri on the CD player, Panditji got up,
and left the room.MIDI were only a new breed of musical instruments
that could never actually replace live musicians.Astral Palace (Malkauns), Sagarmatha (Shuddha Nat) and Chinese
Legend (Udaya Ravichandrika, Bilaskhani Todi, Gunkali) CDs.Panditji insisted on making the music so loud it completely
dominated the space.Chinese Legend, was playing.India's leading violinists was serving us, refusing to sit down with
Pandit Jasraj and myself.Kala during the summer of 1996,
and those lessons were also one of the highlights of my life.Pandit Jasraj, and other giants, filtering the concepts their
music embodies through my own temperament.This interview was an unforgettable experience!The raga Shuddha Nat: What does this raga mean to you?And it should not be monotonous.But rag should be, structure
should be, the same.Whenever I start, I pray.And whenever I teach someone,
I always explain to them what is mother and father.In our culture, we believe
that man can be a god.So God came and ask them what you want.And if you can always serve
your mother, father, you don't have to say God.Mother, father is everything.He want to serve his mother, father.And so, because he stood on that
brick, he became Vithoba.Not a single time did he think of any god.Whose feet should I
touch?Chandidas was only poet, but Vidyapati was definitely a singer and
poet.He used to sing, and he was a saint.You invite him, because God loves music.Now don't sing for any XYZ.That's what he is trying to say.What before singing, what I think.Nat is a full scale, major scale.You can make many, many ragas in this scale, same
scale.Whatever Indian classical music shows one scale, it should be three ragas
can be in the same scale, at least.There are certain phrases in that, which show that this
is this raga.Is the rasa different for every raga?That's your everything, your musicianship.This is Dhanashri,
only Dhanshri.Just this phrase is the same in Dhanashri and Bhatiyar, but after that Bhatiyar
becomes different.Maybe the Ga, the gandhar is same, but the neighbor note
changes the bhav of raga, and the weight of the gandhar.Jasraj sings some phrases.And these shrutis show if this Ga is higher, or this
Ga is lower.That's how the weight of that Ga differs in each rag.Ga, the major Ga, but that Ga could be either a little higher,
one shruti higher, or one shruti lower.But it takes a very strong ear to able
to distinguish that.I'll tell you: I saw Hariprasad Chaurasia perform Bhairavi in the morning as
a full raga, not as short ending piece.That must be why it sounded so unusual.But maybe because it was a flute that
it sounded...Dhanashri gandhar is the same.Last night I sang Purya Dhanashri.So I will explain two types
of rishabh, and it shows the timing of the ragas.How the feel of the raga changes.How we go
towards rishabh.The Bhairav rishab is higher.Why is it higher in Bahirav?Why this is going down towards Sa?Every good artist sings this.Jasraj indicates that this is an interesting thought.University of Toronto, the same day they
announced the scholarship in my name.Jasraj sings some phrases.Its like human being who gets up in the morning.He has lots of energy, and
in the evening he is kind of drained out, and tired.Written by a very great saint, there is a phrase for God.Is the goddess of the evil destroyer.That's what this raga is.The same swaras: Jaunpuri, Adana, Darbari Kanada.But how it makes different
type of music.The interplay between
the two elements.Sometimes is lower part, sometimes
is upper part.You come down, and you go up, but you're still
in Ga.Darbari you can show easily.Shuddha Nat, there is no andolan.Tanpura helping you to make melody.Zero kilometers or miles.Tanpura is giving us that this is your base, this
is San Francisco.The same thing its
giving us.The tanpura gives us a base.You have to stress one scale.The vocal is
different from the instrumental unfolding of the raga.You start the raga very slow, obviously, then you go into a slow
gat.Without principle you cannot make a shastra.First you have to make this kind of outlines.But this is the way we make music, and we make
rag.It won't be as symmetrically as swaras.Its a famous book, I think
maybe from the thirteenth century.Have you ever heard of this theory?Ramnath onstage following a 1996 Los Angeles concert
Something
very nice, because everything attached to human body.It touches different points in my body, different physical sensations.If you stand on fifth note,
pancham, it gives feeling other.Humans make music, or sound, is a vina.Whenever I sing
bhajan its a prayer of some god.Say, about particular god.Why not I play for him if he loves it?But just you have
to invite him, or you have to say his name: God, Vishnu, Shiva.You will see that what kind of music you can create.And whoever you feel that he is my guru, offer it.Panditji discussed the feeling when a raga begins with alap.Robinson and Pandit Jasraj at a private home in Los Angeles (2001)
Whenever
we start, whenever we touch.How do you play
with new born baby?Apart from that, you can't touch hard.There was one concert in London.Panditji, we couldn't find a harmonium player!Panditji, that you know more ragas than most great musicians.The subtleties between them is fine,
its a fine distinction.That, for me, is almost the most difficult
thing.Jaijaivanti is very distinctive.It has both forms of Ga, and both forms
of Ni.But like you said, the subtler differences take more experience.That's a very good way of thinking.Everybody thinks in music
in India that he is a student.Kala, whatever I ask to do her, she immediate.So I'm learning
from her also.One day I was pondering Pandit Jasraj's remarkable voice, and wondered if it
bore any resemblance to another vocalist.Rajesh Yadwad for transcribing the words for most of this interview.Indian ragas, and a musical language inspired
by American, South Asian, European, and other musicians and composers.The contemporary doyen of North Indian
vocals, Sangeet Martand Pandit Jasraj needs little Introduction.Panditji by the same university in 1999 for the first time
since its inception 200 years ago.He has been guided in this by his spiritual guru, late
Maharana Jaiwant Singhji of Anand, another doyen of the Mewati gharana.If someone were to ask me what is
the specialty of Pandit Jasraj.He has learnt hard, practiced diligently and has gained
mastery over the musical notes.His singing gives pleasure to all.Each class was a
jewel, a miniature concert, a gift.He transported us into
higher levels of awareness of the Raga. |
