NCPA Citi Music Workshop

Dhrupad with special focus on Dagar bani
A free workshop on Zoom by Dr. Ritwik Sanyal
(60 mins followed by Q&A session) 

Supported by Citi 

Dhrupad is one of the three main genres of Hindustani (North Indian music) today. The history of this medieval genre goes back to the reign of Raja Mansingh Tomar of Gwalior (1486-1514). It is considered to be the most disciplined in terms of purity of raga and rigidity of composition. Therefore, an in-depth study of these aspects seems to be of immense value not only to the practitioners of dhrupad, but also to the performers of other genres of Hindustani music like khayal, instrumental music, etc.

Historically, four vani /bani (distinct styles) of dhrupad have been identified based on the tempo of rendition and use of embellishments: Gauhar, Dagar, Nauhar and Khandhar. Dagar bani is believed to be the oldest surviving tradition that can be traced back to Swami Haridas (15th century). For some generations, its members were associated with the courts of Jaipur, Udaipur and Mewar. The main feature of this style is the rigorous yet subtle, sophisticated and serene exposition of raga with great attention paid to microtonal inflections (shruti).

The session will focus on the peculiarities of the four bani in general and characteristics (lakshana) of the Dagar tradition in particular. In addition to the overall aesthetics and philosophy of this particular style, special features related to dhrupad-dhamar performance such as alap, rendering of the song-text, layakari, etc., will be explained with ample demonstrations in the specific context of Dagar bani.

Ritwik Sanyal is an internationally acclaimed exponent of dhrupad. Trained in Dagar style under maestros Zia Mohiuddin and Zia Fariduddin Dagar, he received a PhD in musicology and went on to hold high office at the Banaras Hindu University, besides teaching, researching and composing for over four decades. He has been decorated with several top awards and accolades.

Register on: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gKMZXqGRS_WgXar5BeEO4Q