“Sa is the basic note on which the entire structure of the raga rests. It is periodically repeated to maintain the inherent unity of the raga,” says Sandeep Bagche of Agra Gharana in Naad: Understanding Raga Music. He adds: “The power of the voice and its resonance is used to emphasise the ‘sa’ to establish it. This aspect of dhrupad is maintained by frequent use of midhs and gamaks in alaps and avoids embellishments such as murkis.” The singer is required to keep the entire structure of the taal in mind, so that the arrival at the ‘sam’ is seamless.
Different gharanas at different periods of time have reigned supreme due to the personalities and musical acumen of their protagonists. Ustad Faiyyaz Khan held his sway as did Abdul Karim Khan Sahib and Amir Khan Sahib of the Kirana Gharana and Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Sahib of the Patiala Gharana. The same holds true for Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Gangubai Hangal and Kishori Amonkar.
Ustad Faiyyaz Khan was an extremely versatile vocalist. Besides the khayal, he had a large repertoire of dhrupad, dhamar, thumri and dadra, rigorous training in which is essential to justify the gharana’s forte — layakari and rhythmic perfection. Though Agra gayaki is supposed to be robust and aggressive, his music had an emotional appeal. His singing was influenced by his voice, which was low and sonorous. His recorded performances of Lalit and Todi point to the inherent aesthetics that marked his gayaki.
The musical lineage of Faiyyaz Khan came from his grandfather, the noted Ustad Ramzan Khan Rangile of Sikandarabad. Hence the name Agra Rangila Gharana, representing his soft and vibrant gayaki. Faiyyaz Khan’s mentor Nathan Khan’s son Vilayat Hussain Khan (1895-1962) Agrawale, trained by his brother Mohammed Khan, was another popular voice of the gharana.
Meera Savoor, a living exponent of the Agra gharana, came under the tutelage of Pt. Ramarao Naik in Bangalore by default as he was the only Hindustani teacher then; she has not looked back since. According to Savoor, the Agra style offers a variety in expression through bolbants, bolbanavs, boltaans and jodi taans. Although thumri is sung by this school, special attention is paid to dadra.
Colourful imprint
“The gayaki of this gharana is complete in itself,” says Lalith Rao. She, too, studied under Ramarao Naik. She also trained with Pt. Dinakar Kaikani in Delhi and later, Khadim Hussain Khan in Bombay for fourteen years. She has taught a number of students, many of whom are performing artistes — Bharathi Prathap, Nishant Pannickar, Manohar Patwardhan, Kailash Kulkarni, Meera Sahasrebuddhe and Tara Kini in Bangalore and Pratima Ganesh in Singapore.
There are so many learning from Pt. Dinakar who have made an impression. Aditi Kaikani Upadhya and Raja Miya in Bombay, Shaukat Hussain in Ahmedabad, Wasim Ahmed, Vijay Kuchlu and Shubra Guha in Kolkota, to name a few. The credit goes to Ustad Faiyyaz Khan, who transformed the traditional and austere Agra gayaki to leave his colourful imprint on the gharana. Thus giving it the title of the Agra Rangila gharana.
Lalith Rao observes that the musicians of the Agra Gharana play with laya, weaving in words, to make patterns around the beat. Khayal in the hands of the performers from the Agra School is a progression — from the abstract to the concrete and from the divine to the human. Darbari Kanada developed in the mandra saptak is popular with the Agra gharana maestros. The other well-known musicians of this school are Bhaskar Bua Bhakle, Pt. Bhatkhande, Pt. S.N. Ratan Jankar, Sumati Mutatkar, Dipali Nag, Pt. C.R. Vyas, and Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki.
