Known for imparting the emotional content to the listeners through his distinctive way of singing, Ustad Rashid Khan talks about his gharana, guru and much more

While bringing an emotional touch to their music might be the mainstay of musicians both young or old, very few actually go through the rigors of practicing that hard to ensure that people are charmed by the same. Keeping the age-old tradition of the Rampur-Sahaswan Gharana alive, Ustad Rashid Khan, fourth generation singing maestro aims to continue bringing emotion to his music even now.

“I really began enjoying the music only after I understood its emotional content while growing up,” says Khan. Coming from a family where music had deep spiritual and emotional roots, it was on the insistence of his mother that he began singing. “The Gharana founded by my great grand-father, Ustad Enayat Hussain was simply dying for want of technique and the lack of emotional appeal. I just practiced my Riyaz rigourously and the rest followed. I tried to give my music a distinct personality and due to it the Gharana benefited,” he adds.

Khan believes that there are a lot of differences that separate a good singer from a great one. He says, “We can learn to sing a certain raga efficiently, but to sing it with emotions is something that cannot be taught but felt. The emotional content may be found in the alaap, sometimes in the bandish, or on facial expressions while bringing the lyrics to life.”

... contd.