Latest news with #Musician
Reuters
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Ziad Rahbani, Lebanese musical giant and sardonic critic, dead at 69
BEIRUT, July 26 (Reuters) - Ziad Rahbani, the Lebanese composer and musician who built a distinct Lebanese sound from Western and Arabic musical roots, and whose sardonic critique of the country's sectarian politics rang true to Lebanese across the divides, has died. He was 69. Rahbani was much-loved across Lebanon and his words remained relevant across generations, from those who grew up with him during the 1975-90 Civil War, to the post-war generation who have struggled to shake the war's legacy. He passed away at a hospital in Beirut on Saturday morning after a long illness, the hospital said.
CTV News
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Jana Jacobs gets personal with new music
Winnipeg Watch Musician Jana Jacobs drops her new single 'Touchin', explores vulnerability in songwriting, and previews her debut EP and Fringe show.
Time of India
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
PAC band keeps beating strong with rhythm & legacy
Lucknow: The morning is thick with humidity. Clouds hang low, the air heavy and slow. But inside the 35th Battalion Band Headquarters in Lucknow's Mahanagar, the atmosphere crackles with energy — not from parade commands or marching boots, but from trumpets blaring, drums thundering, and saxophones singing in unison. This is no ordinary music hall. Here, khaki replaces concert black, and every beat is rooted in discipline. Awadhesh Yadav of Bareilly and Madhvendra Kumar of Ghaziabad aren't your typical musicians — they're constables with a call to serve both the nation and the note. "We're learning to command not just rifles, but rhythm," says Awadhesh, pausing between a precision-perfect snare sequence. They are among 10 PAC personnel undergoing intensive training in brass instruments — part of a broader revival drive to modernise PAC bands across battalions. At the heart of this effort is a proud legacy, one that marches back to the post-Independence years. The roots of the PAC band stretch back to Captain Ram Singh Thakuri — the legendary composer of the INA's rousing anthem Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja. Post-Independence, in 1948, he joined the Provincial Armed Constabulary as a Deputy SP with one task: to raise a ceremonial police band. What he built was a living symbol of nationalism. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Thị trường có dấu hiệu suy thoái không? IC Markets Đăng ký Undo Declared the official State Police Band in 1965, it began performing at Raj Bhawan, Republic Day parades, state funerals, and cultural showcases. Even after retirement in 1974, Captain Ram Singh continued mentoring musicians. He was named Emeritus Musician by the UP govt and trained recruits till 2000. He died in 2002. Today, his legacy lives on in bandmaster Vishnu Pratap, who joined the PAC in 1987 and trained directly under the Captain. "We weren't just taught music — we were taught patriotism," says Vishnu, who has led the band at grand events including Prayagraj's Kumbh Mela and global expos in Noida. As part of chief minister Yogi Adityanath's directive, PAC bands are being overhauled — with upgraded instruments, improved training infrastructure, and dedicated performance spaces wherever they are deployed. "We've begun intensive 90-day training sessions for constables from different battalions," says Vishnu. "But mastery takes time — at least three years of consistent monitoring and hard work." A full-fledged brass band has 46 musicians, though compact units of 22 are also fielded. The ensemble features a powerful line-up: trumpets, cornets, clarinets, flugelhorns, saxophones, euphoniums, tubas, French horns, and more. "We have it all — from alto trumpet to baritone horn," Vishnu says. Among those training under him are constables like Sudhir Maurya from Gonda. "It's a privilege to be part of the tradition started by Captain Ram Singh," says Madhvendra. To honour this legacy, a dedicated PAC Band Museum has been set up on the 35th Battalion campus. Soon to be inaugurated, the museum showcases vintage instruments, historic uniforms, handwritten musical scores by Captain Ram Singh, and decades-spanning photographs of performances that stirred both hearts and parades. As Vishnu lifts his baton and the brass band comes alive once more, on Saturday they will perform at Raj Bhawan: "For our men in uniform, music is not just an art — it's a duty. And this duty does not fade," adds Vishnu.
Times of Oman
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times of Oman
Where the Oud meets the Sarod: A musical bridge across civilisations
MUSCAT: The haunting resonance of the Oud, one of the oldest stringed instruments in the Arab world, continues to echo across generations. But few may know that its musical lineage spans continents — from Arabia to Afghanistan, and from there to the heart of India, evolving into the Sarod, now a cornerstone of Indian classical music. At the crossroads of this journey stands Joydeep Mukherjee, an eminent Indian musician and cultural historian based out of eastern Indian city of Kolkata, who has dedicated his life to reviving these forgotten connections — not only through performance, but also through painstaking restoration and research. 'The lute has long held its place on the world stage,' said Mukherjee in a chat with Times of Oman. 'But it is the Arabian Oud and Afghan Rabab that shaped the journey of the fretless lute family. These instruments didn't just travel — they transformed, enriched by the musical soil of every region they touched.' The story of this transformation began in 6th and 7th century Arabia, where the Oud and Rabab gained prominence. From the Middle East, they journeyed eastward, entering Afghanistan, where the Rabab emerged as a distinct and popular folk instrument. By the 13th century, Afghan soldiers and horse traders brought the Rabab to India — an instrument once played while marching into battle, now seeking new life in a land of melody. Over time, North Indian musicians began experimenting with the Afghan Rabab, attempting to adapt it to Indian ragas. Perhaps the most pivotal transformation came in the 16th century, when Miya Tansen, legendary court musician of Emperor Akbar, reimagined the Rabab to better serve Indian classical music. This larger, deeper version came to be known as the 'Dhrupad Rabab', later evolving into the 'Tanseni' or 'Seni Rabab.' The next century saw Jaffer Khan, a descendant of Tansen, replace the Rabab's wooden components with steel and wood, creating a new instrument — the Sursingar. Parallel innovations followed in the central Indian city of Gwalior, where Hyder Khan and Ghulam Ali Khan Bangash introduced metallic strings and steel fretboards, naming the refined instrument Sarod — meaning 'sweet sound' in Persian. It was Ghulam Ali's son Nanne Khan, and later his descendants — most notably Hafiz Ali Khan and the globally renowned Amjad Ali Khan — who brought the Sarod to international acclaim. Their interpretations made the Sarod not only a household name in Indian music but also a symbol of Indo-Middle Eastern musical kinship. Yet, parallel innovations were quietly flourishing elsewhere. In Shahjahanpur, Murad Ali deepened the Sarod's tone by adopting metallic strings. His lineage — Abdullah Khan and Mohammed Ameer Khan — made further refinements, even developing the Sur-Rabab, a hybrid of Sursingar and Tanseni Rabab, in the 1880s in British Bengal. But perhaps no one explored the full potential of these instruments like Radhika Mohan Maitra during the mid-20th century. A visionary of the Shahjahanpur Gharana, he created multiple unique hybrids: the Mohanveena (Sarod + Sursingar), the Dilbahar (Sarod + Surbahar), and Nabadeepa (Sursingar + Sarangi). Parallel to these developments, Ustad Wazir Khan, a descendant of Tansen's daughter and court musician of Rampur, trained the iconic Baba Allaudin Khan. The latter revolutionised the Sarod's design — enlarging the sound box, lengthening the body, and increasing the number of sympathetic strings. These changes formed the blueprint for what would become the Senia Maihar Gharana's Sarod — played by Ali Akbar Khan, Bahadur Khan, and Sharan Rani, among others. The evolutionary arc continued with Buddhadeb Dasgupta, principal disciple of Radhika Mohan Maitra. In the 1960s and '70s, he introduced a child-friendly 36-inch Sarod model, further democratising access to this once-royal instrument. Today, when many classical musicians chase stage time and limelight, Joydeep Mukherjee has chosen a more introspective path — tracing the past, reviving forgotten sounds, and giving life to instruments that were fading into silence. A grand disciple of Radhika Mohan Maitra, Mukherjee has, over the past 15 years, revived and restored fretless lutes like the Tanseni Rabab, Sursingar, Sur-Rabab, and Mohanveena. In 2025, he completed the restoration of every significant Sarod variant from the Shahjahanpur Gharana, spanning more than two centuries of innovation — from Murad Ali to Buddhadeb Dasgupta. 'Music is universal. It should not be restricted by geography,' Mukherjee said. 'The Middle East has shaped India's musical traditions for over a thousand years. There was cultural intermingling for millennia. My work is a tribute to that shared history.' Mukherjee hopes that his revival of these instruments sends a message across borders. 'To those in the Arab world who cherish the Oud and Rabab, know that these instruments live on — not just in memory, but in sound, performance, and evolution.' In a time when tradition and innovation often stand at odds, Mukherjee is proving they can co-exist. Music is not just sound — it is memory, migration, and meaning. Through his hands, the lute family sings again, telling stories that span deserts, courts, and centuries.
