Touted as the oldest classical music festival in India, Shree Baba Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan was at one time the most prestigious classical music event. Organised near an ancient Devi temple, the festival had the tradition of being an offering of music by the artists who would perform free to get blessings. Careers of several artists were said to have blossomed after performances at Harivallabh, notably Pandit Ravi Shankar and Pandit Omkarnath Thakur.
It is still an enormously respected platform – artists who have never performed here want to, like the young star vocalist of today, Manjusha Patil. Once, crowds of over 20000 used to congregate at the famous Devi Talao or talab (pond); now not more than a couple of thousand patient listeners sit through the bitter cold. It was interesting to see several young children there, curled up to sleep. I asked a young couple why they brought their small children who clearly were unable to keep awake, and the answer I got was enlightening – ‘we were brought here to listen to music by our parents when we were this age, and it is a tradition we want to continue.’ Who knows these years of hearing may lead to understanding our ancient music?
One of the main reasons for the extensive appreciation of classical music in the Kapurthala/Jalandhar region was the patronage given to classical music by the Kapurthala princes, specifically Kumar Bikram Singh (younger son of Maharaja Nihal Singh), in whose haveli in Jalandhar resided his Guru, Mir Nasir Ahmed, direct descendant of the Senia beenkar lineage from Tansen’s daughter’s line.
That is as may be, but primarily the audience here now wants to hear flashy “tayyari”. Like most audiences now, they respect speed at the cost of clarity, pre-rehearsed “tihais” at the cost of spontaneity, and loud layakaari.
The organisers had an interesting array of artists – many of whom are not heard at the biggest festivals. It was a refreshing change not to see all the same handful of names who today adorn all concert stages.
The first day started traditionally with a shehnai recital by Krishna Ram Choudhary from Banaras. Having additionally learnt from the great Pandit Mahadev Prasad Mishra, the recital had elements of delicacy associated with thumri. Prashant and Nishant Mallick of the 13th generation old Darbhanga Dhrupad tradition sang next. Their choice of raga Shree at 9 p.m. was explained by Prashant who said in the Guru Granth Sahib, Shree raga is mentioned as a premier raga, so they chose to present it in the land of the Gurus. Their next raga choices revealed the novelty they are bringing into an otherwise strictly traditional rendition – Gaoti and Charukeshi. The brothers performed well together, in total sync, their alap has impressive gamaks, and the bandishes were sung with the virile, laya driven approach characteristic of their gharana. They sang variously in chautaal, dhammartaal, and sooltaal.
Pandit Tejendra N. Mazumdar in his recital of raga Jaijaiwanti played a soulful Dhrupad ang alap, and during the gats concentrated on laya work in his presentation. It was a racy action packed performance, targeting the expectant Punjabi audience. On the tabla was the darling of the Punjab – Namdhari Sukhvinder Singh (Pinky) whose “sangat” enhanced the concert. Raga Kirwani which followed brought a totally different more reflective mood to the concert. His concerts indeed leave one musically replete. Suresh Gandharv ended the evening’s recitals.
The next day started with a vocal recital by Phoenix-based Manu Shrivastava. Delhi-based Dr. Santosh Nahar on violin and Sardar Satwinder Pal Singh on sarangi played an unusual jugalbandi; both instruments being with a bow and fairly similar. Both artists played extremely well, and are wonderfully practised but the unusual combination of their instruments did not really sync well.
Pandita Shubhada Paradkar sang two compositions in raga Chayanat, after a brief Agra style “nom tom” alap. Her maturity as a singer, with spontaneous laya work, interesting different beat taans and subtle raga delineations recalled to mind the old saying “ye purane chawal hain”. Her next offering was in Shahana and she ended with a “tappa” as a tribute to the Punjabi audience, which however failed to please. Devendra Verma’s accompaniment on the harmonium was inadequate. The last concerts were a tabla jugalbandi by Sukhvinder Singh and Shubh Maharaj, and vocal recital by Prasad Khaparde.
The last day which was an all night session started with a vocal recital by Seattle-based Chandana Dixit. Dr. Harvinder Sharma, disciple of Ustad Vilayat Khan disarmed the audience by saying he had been a part of Harivallabh for the last 50 years as a listener played raga Pilu. He has the distinct touch of his gharana, with some beautiful meends and signature taans. He ended with singing and playing the popular “Ram rattan dhan payo”.
Upcoming new star Saniya Patankar was next; she sang a somewhat prolonged raga Nand; however the drut sargam bandish was executed expertly at an impossibly fast speed. Abir Bhav Varma on the tabla impressed. Her next piece in raga Sohini too was unusual, and she ended with a jhula “sham jhule hindola”, again different, as the composition was in different speeds.
The Kedia Brothers representing the Maihar tradition played a jugalbandi of sitar and sarod – raga Chandranandan. They were melodious, succinct and pleasing. On the tabla was maestro Shubhankar Bannerji. The concluding items were vocal recital by Shantanu Bhattacharya representing Patiala gayeki, Pandit Ronu Mazumdar on his flute and finally Pandit Upendra Bhat.
The feel of this festival is very distinct – there are several dignitaries who are honoured on stage after each concert, and donations made to the Harivallabh Sabha are announced between concerts. However, in a classical music festival of this stature, it only acts as a distraction to the concerts.
