Ustad Shahid Parvez belongs to the seventh generation of Etawah Gharana, a school famous for its ‘gayaki ang’ on instruments. His grandfather Ustad Wazir Khan was a surbahar maestro. As is the custom of this rich musical lineage, Shahid Parvez was groomed in vocal music and tabla prior to sitar training by his father-guru Ustad Aziz khan. Equipped with such armour, he blends the vocalism of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Ustad Amir Khan in his style with elan.
This goes without saying that Ustad Shahid Parvez is one of the most brilliant musical wonders belonging to the Etawah Gharana that boasts of several legends like Ustad Imdad Khan, Ustad Enayet Khan and Ustad Vilayat Khan. Interestingly, like these legendary musicians, Parvez too is a household name in Bengal – a land that produced legendary instrumentalists. Going by the musically charged Kolkata winter this year, no prestigious musical was complete without his sitar recital. Mostly accompanied by younger tabla maestros like Hindole Majumdar and Shubhajyoti Guha, he was at his captivating best in Dover Lane, Chowdhury House Music Festival, Sunanda Majumdar Memorial Concert, Ballygunge Maitreya Music Conference and the likes.
Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan
Also, a ‘loving teacher’ according to his numerous disciples here, he made himself available for them in workshops and teaching sessions! And yet it was difficult to catch him for an interview; because he takes his own sweet time to open up and is very wary of “discussing” his passion which, more often than not, gets “misrepresented”. To ally his doubts I attended a workshop, held at his senior disciple Subhranil Sarkar’s residence and what a morning it turned out to be!
While the Ustad gauged my reverential mindset, I witnessed how a dazzling star transformed into one of the most patient teachers who handled an absolute beginner and an advanced student with equal care; now giving correctional instruction, now jesting, now enquiring about their difficulties; now displaying what can be termed as the near perfect melodic phrase on the sitar.
One kept wondering how could he bring himself down to a beginner’s level and correct the placement of hands on the sitar and teach to play Sa Re Ga Ma! But when asked, it was the Ustad who was nonplussed! “Because teaching is not my profession; playing concerts is my profession and I give my best on stage. Teaching is my passion. I do not teach for money. Those, who do, will give a note-book full of scripted material sans ‘gyaan’ (wisdom/knowledge). My method is different. I don’t please learners (by giving notes), but correct them personally. I can gauge a learner’s intent even if he is not able to produce the teevra madhyam of Yaman. I strive to show the technique of playing step by step. My sole aim is to make them understand my thought process.
Ustad Shahid Parvez
Describing attributes of a good student, Parvez said, “I strongly believe that zuban seekhni chahiye, haath theek se chalna chahiye, laya ki samajh chahiye. In fact one must master the vocal or instrumental grammar and language of music along with rhythm. These are the basic requirements before one starts learning. I can claim, now, that I am the best student, because I think I have fulfilled my requirements. While sharing my knowledge with freshers I do not come down from my level. I simply try to bring them to my level by showing the way.”
Categories of guru
Emphasising the role of guru, Parvez said, “There are two categories of a guru. One who informs about the goal and the other who shows the way and also takes his followers along with him; sadguru wo hai jo sahi rasta dikhaye aur le ke jaye. As a performer, I give first priority to melody; then comes the raga, then the emotions of the raga, and finally chalan or the gait of the raga. But while teaching, the path gets reversed. I teach composed phrases defining the chalan of the raga to show raga me chalna kaise hai, be it alap or taan.”
Most of these phrases, one noticed, started from even-numbered beats like 8th or 12th beat of Teen taal and caught the refrain before arrival on the sam (first beat of a tala-cycle), giving the phrase a complex gait. Reason? “These pre-composed passages are actually packages, stuffed with almost all the requirements of swara, laya, tala – even the pause-based information. I teach everyone the same way. Gradually, each one shapes up according to his capacity of understanding, memory and execution. To be able to copy is one thing and to be able to exert one’s ingenuity is another. When the twain meets it gives the pleasure of two in one ice-creams! The ingenuity comes from above; yet perseverance pays, lage rahne se kahi na kahi pahuch jayenge.”
As is the custom of Parvez’s rich musical lineage, he was groomed in vocal music and tabla prior to sitar training by his father-guru Ustad Aziz Khan. When asked who influenced his musical psyche the most, he confessed with disarming sincerity, “Teen logon ka gehra asar hai (three maestros left their deep impression). Ustad Amir Khan, Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Ustad Vilayat Khan.” He goes on to display by playing ornate style of Bade Khan’s vocalism with superb finesse.
‘Copy has no value’
“Vocalism on an instrument is more captivating, I have gathered. I translate vowels through meends and consonants through strokes. Despite all I do not copy anyone. Copy has no value. An original one rupee note has more value over a xeroxed hundred rupee note. One copies one’s idol to imbibe everything quickly without following the intrinsic philosophy. I follow; and try to go beyond their shadows; because these are their thoughts. Another person’s clothes cannot fit me. But to make it appear tailor-made for me, there has to be some ingenuity. How I have incorporated their philosophy my way is discussed at length in ‘My Inspiration’, a recently released CD.”
That the Ustad’s most powerful weapon is his style of opening a recital by beckoning silence is no secret. What philosophy works behind this? A visibly pleased Ustad explained, “I do not play to entertain only. I try to invoke peace and to take all my listeners towards the emptiness that is pregnant with music; do suron ke beech ka pause bhi music hai. I don’t do it intentionally, it happens. Meditation is prescribed by so many but has ever anyone taught you how to meditate? Tightly shut eyes amplify mental noises; but such music leads to meditation.
“Moreover, it depends how you see it from your end. If one is happy to see the sea from its shores, fine; but there are others who would like to take a plunge. I do. And after plunging in the ocean of a raga, each time I come out with different gems. No two recital of the same raga can be the same. That is why there should be no place for rigidity in arts. Achha toh yahi hai ki rahe saath pasban-e-aql; lekin kabhi kabhi usey tanha bhi chhod dena chahiye. Wisdom is good, but at times it should be left alone. The heart should evaluate the art.”
It’s all about temperament
Pandit Vijay Kichlu and sitar Sugato Nag analyse the magic of Ustad Shahid Parvez
Pandit Vijay Kichlu (Agra gharana)
Renowned musicologist and founder-director of ITC Sangeet Research Academy
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“Usually, short recitals do not help gauge the ‘qabliyat’ (competency) of a musician and I do not get swayed easily either. During Sangeet Ashram presentation when I heard Shahid Pervez, I could not help remembering Ustad Vilayat Khan’s recital in 1970s when I had hailed him as ‘sitar ke Badshah’. Albeit such a vastly knowledgeable legend remains supreme; on this day too I could not help exclaim, ‘Shahid Parvez is the emperor of sitar at present.’ Truly, his technique has given a new dimension to both vertical and horizontal playing. However, he is very moody and I cannot appreciate his reasons for selecting unripe tabla-accompanists. He rises to another plane with tabla maestros.’
Sitar exponent Sugato Nag (Etawah gharana)
Disciple of Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta (Senia Shahjahanpur Gharana)
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“In each of his alap, every note is sustained to its fullest extent; which makes it extremely slow and potent enough to besiege hearts. He embodies perfectionism at its best. No one can play the ulal-jhala the way he does and the clock-work precision in every tihai hits the sam like a bullet, as he says himself.”
Subhranil Sarkar
Student of Ustad Shahid Parvez
Subhranil Sarkar
“At a concert where I performed on the sitar with my Ustad, he, while introducing me, said, ‘I believe my own learning has started now. So what can I say about my disciple. He is here to get your blessings. Please bless him and all the other youngsters who are aspiring to do well.’ Believe me, he meant every bit of it. The precision and impact that one can see in his music is present in his words too. He says, ‘If you understand my words, you can understand my music; music is not just in technicalities but in the temperament of the artist’.”
