Begum Parveen Sultana was born n Gowgong, assam and from a very young age was steeped in the lore and lives of the great musical masters by her father Janal Ikramul Majib a classical music devotee and a great admirer of the legendary vocalist Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.
Begum Parveen Sultana debuted on stage at the age of nine and very soon recorded her first live performances. She was originally trained in the Patiala Gharana but Dilshad Khan’s guidance in the Kirana Gharana helped the real essence of other styles to flow into her music.
She has been honoured with several prestigious awards including the Gandharva Kalindhi Mia Tansen Award and has been the youngest performing artist to receive the presidential award of Padmashree in 1976. Blessed with a voice that spans three and a half octaves its sweetness has been compared to that of the Rabab an ancient Persian string instrument which the young Parveen was often exposed to as a child.
The recital captured in this album begins with a short alap in rageshri late night raga with a sweet romantic mood. The first Khayal composition Sage Bicharo Ab More’ is set to Vilambit ektaal a slow rhythmic cycle of twelve beats.
Throughout the performance Begum Sultana explores every nuance and melodic phrase of the raga using the words of the composition as a vehicle for the notes. As the tempo increases more complex not patterns are introduced. Improvised phrases the words of the composition (bol tans) and the actual notes (sargams) are used to create a rich melodic texture. This is followed by fast not patterns called Taans.
The second raga mand is often sung to evoke the color and richness of the Rajasthan desert. The compositions in this Raga Derived from the folk Music tradition are classified as light classical allowing a more liberal interpretation of the raga than in Khayal. The word Misra (Mixed) indicates that notes outside of the raga structure are intentionally added for aesthetic effect. The performance concludes with a Tarana (‘To Doni ta Deem tad ere na’) a lively compositional form based upon the use of meaningless syllables in a fast rendition.
Parveen Sultana has great virtuosity and a distinctively sweet voice that can traverse 3 octaves. These among other qualities have made her one of the most influential female Khayal vocalists of the modern era of Indian classical music. Presented in this compilation are the artist’s exploration of the ragas rageshri and Misra Mand.
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