Bade Ghulam Ali Khan

Infobox musical artist
Name = Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan
बड़े ग़ुलाम अली ख़ान
بڈے غلام علی خان


Img_capt = Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan
Img_size =
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Bade Ghulam Ali Khan
Alias =
Born = ??, 1902
Died = 25 April, 1968
Hyderabad, India
Origin = Kasur, Punjab
Genre = Hindustani Classical Music
Occupation = Hindustani Classical Vocalist
Years_active = 1920 - 1967
Label = ??
URL =

Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Devanagari: बड़े ग़ुलाम अली ख़ान; Shahmukhi: بذے غلام علی خان; b. Kasur, near Lahore, Punjab, British India (now Pakistan), c. 1902; d. Hyderabad, India, April 25, 1968) was an Indian vocalist, considered one of the finest representatives of the Hindustani music tradition in the early and middle 20th century.

He belonged to the Patiala Gharana of Hindustani classical music. He received the Padma Bhushan in 1962, and the Sangeet Natak Academy award.

Bade Ghulam Ali had a unique voice, a wide range spanning three octaves, effortless production, all-round sweetness and unparalleled flexibility and ease of movement in all tempi. [ [http://www.itcsra.org/tribute.asp?tribute=4 Bade Ghulam Ali Khan - Tribute to a Maestro] ]

Life and career

Bade Ghulam Ali was the son of a famous singer, Ali Baksh Khan. He hailed from a West Punjabi family of musical heritage. He learned sarangi and vocal from his paternal uncle Kale Khan, who was also a famous singer.

Having lived a life of the greatest and worst experiences, Bade Ghulam Ali absorbed all his mental, physical and spiritual powers into the study and practice of music. Khansahib was married to Ali Jiwai, who died in 1932, which made his grief pour into his music.

By 1944, though in the age of giant personalities like Abdul Karim Khan, Alladiya Khan and Faiyaz Khan, he was considered by many as the uncrowned king of Hindustani music.Fact|date=September 2008

He lived at various intervals in Lahore, Bombay, Calcutta and Hyderabad. He remains the inspiration for a whole generation of top-ranking singers and performers in both India and Pakistan, including Ghulam Ali (b. 1940), Pakistan's leading "ghazal" singer.

After the partition of India in 1947, Khan returned to his home in Pakistan, but returned to India some time afterward to permanently reside there. He did not approve of the partition, saying: "If in every home one child was taught Hindustani classical music this country would never have been partitioned." In 1957, he acquired Indian citizenship.

Khan was reluctant to sing for films, but sang two songs based on ragas Sohni and Rageshree for the 1960 film "Mughal-e-Azam", in which his voice was represented as Tansen's by the music director Naushad. In an attempt to dissuade Naushad by asking an obnoxiously high price, he reportedly ended up charging Rs. 25,000/- per song when the going rate for popular playback singers such as Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Rafi was below Rs. 500/- per song.

He died in Hyderabad at Basheerbagh Palace in 1968, after a prolonged illness which left him partially paralysed in his last years; he continued to sing and perform in public with support from his son Munawar Ali Khan until his death.

Discography

* "Mehfil - Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan" - Times Music
* "Golden Milestones - Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan"
* "Homage to Bade Gulam Ali Audio Rec. Double CD With Ustad Munawar Ali Khan and Raza Ali"

The legacy

Today, "the Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Yaadgar Sabha", founded by his disciple Malti Gilani, keeps his music and memory alive. It aims to promote Hindustani classical music and organises many concerts to this end. Its primary aim, however, is to provide medical aid to ailing musicians. The Sabha organises a Sabrang Utsav every year in the memory of the maestro.

References

* [http://www.musicalnirvana.com/hindustani/bade_ghulam_ali_khan.html Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan on MusicalNirvana.com]
* [http://www.indianmelody.com/badeghulam.htm 2 articles about the Ustad]
* Sapra, Vinita (2004). " [http://bagchee.com/BookDisplay.aspx?Bkid=B24539 Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan: His Contribution to Indian Music] ". Delhi, India: Raj Publications. ISBN 81-86208-32-1.
* [http://www.rediff.com/movies/2004/nov/12mughal.htm Immortal-e-Azam]
* [http://sarangi.info/bgak Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan recordings and interview of about one-hour is also available on www.sarangi.info]
* [http://www.classicalmusicheritage.org Patiala Gharana Classical Music Academy of Pakistan]
* [http://www.patialakasurgharana.com Jawaad Ali Khan & Mazhar Ali Khan Website Homepage Bade Ghulam Ali Khan's Grandsons have their homepage] please visit for more up-to-date info on Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Patiala Kasur Gharana
* [http://courses.nus.edu.sg/course/ellpatke/Miscellany/bade%20ghulam.htm Discography page on Rajeev Patke's website]
* [http://www.indianmelody.com/badearticle1.htm Bombay concert by Bade Ghulam Ali Khan]
* [http://people.cis.ksu.edu/~ab/Miscellany/badegulam.htm Frontline article]

References

ee also

*Ghulam Ali
*Two-part audio recording of an interview with Bade Ghulam Ali Khan: http://sarangi.info/2007/03/10/interview-with-bade-ghulam-ali-khan/