Even before Ustad* Haafiz Ali Khan gave his
Sarod his magic touch at a public performance, the atmosphere
used to become electric. He possessed a magnetic presence.
Tall, massive fair with a neatly trimmed beard, Ustad Haafiz
Ali Khan was more than handsome. He was overwhelming with
his charming manners and large eyes, as eloquent as his exquisite
music which was not just an artistic performance but a form
of prayer.
No
wonder, for every stroke of melody which he produced resulted from a superb combination
of nimble fingers, a clear intellect and a magnificent heart, that could be brought
off only by a spiritual compulsion. Of such stuff is a real musical phenomenon
made . Greatness at this level is essentially an autonomous happening but background
help. Ustad Haafiz Ali Khan was born in an ambience of old-world courtliness and
music. His great grandfather came from Afganisthan with a talent for the Rabab.
His grandfather Ustad Ghulam Ali Khan carried on the good work; with his modifications
the Sarod as we know it today came into its own. |
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He was initiated in the tradition of the senia gharana
by Ustad Pyar Khan and Ustad Jafar Khan, direct descendants
of the line of Tansen. The influence of the school was passed
on to his grandson. This was Ustad Haafiz Ali Khan's rich
inheritance. To this was added his grounding in dhrupad
and dhamar under the guidance of Shri Ganeshilalji of Mathura,
descendant of Swami Haridas, Mian Tansen's guru. And to
round it off, he sat at the feet of Ustad Wazir khan of
Rampur. The patronage Ustad Haafiz Ali Kahan received from
the court of Gwalior subsequently added polish and perfection.
The rest was individual talent - the man himself symbolising
creativity harnessed to purity. Accolades came in profusion
throughout his life.
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From
audiences who drank in his music with ecstasy,and from public bodies. In The early
1940's he was honoured with the title of Aftab-e-Sarod by the All Bengal Music
Conference in Calcutta and Sangeet Ratna Alankar by The Maharaja of Gwalior. In
1952 He received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and the next year was made a
fellow of the Akademi. The Universities of Visva Bharti and Khairagharh conferred
doctorates on him, To cap it all came the award of Padma Bhushan in 1960. Ustad
Haafiz Ali Khan spanned four generations. Meanwhile, the milieu has changed, so
have the tastes and habits of the music buffs. From the glittering courts to public
performances in these hard times-its is a strange metamorphosis. the Ustad lived
to transcend it and even after his death in 1972 at the age of 95, his art lives
on in the work of his sons- Mubarak Ali Khan, Remat Ali Khan and Amjad
Ali Khan. |
* Ustad - Master
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