Pakhawaj Today

There are questions which keeps on ringing in my mind over and over again…what will happen to pakhawaj after say fifty years? Will it be able to survive? If yes, then will it remain in its the pure form? Certainly no one knows the future for sure.

I was recently reading an interview of Vidushi Kishori Amonkar Ji, she mentioned that ‘she has no expectations from any of her disciples if they would be able to carry her legacy forward, she does not see that passion and patience required to master the delicate art of Indian classical music in the present generation’ I’m sure, like her, many other artists and gurus are also worried. There are hardly any takers of this knowledge, if there are any, they either lack time or patience or both.

I was also surprised to see the number of videos available on youtube and other similar websites post by “pakahwaj players”…only few of them carry any quality or knowledge. There are people who are struggling to produce a clear “thaap” or “dha” or are either playing tabla compositions or bols on pakhawaj. There is a lot of work to be done to bring forward the real talented artists, popularize this instrument and above all…keep it alive and resonating for years to come….Jai ho!

Nathdwara Parampara – Speciality

Following are few points which are unique and are special in the playing style of Sri Nathdwara Gharana and which gives this Gharana a separate identity.

– As per Pandit Dalchand Sharma Ji, melody and tone clarity is given a lot importance. I’m not allowed to play anything extra till the time I master the thaap. Its the most difficult part to master for a pakhawaj student.

– Instead of tit, kita or kiti is used more prominately in this gharana. For example – dha kit tak, ta kit tak, kita tak thun thun, kradhet tit kind of bols are used effectively and frequently

– The style is different from the Nana Panse Gharana (which is soft and soothing) but similar to that of Kudao Singh Gharana (which is full of energy and forceful).

– One can also observe the system of playing ta on left and ka played on right hand which appears to be different from other paramparas.

– ta, din, thu, na, kita, tak, ga-di-ga-na are used for the preliminary practices. Here is a small exercise that I’ve learnt from Pandit Ji

ta ta ta ta thun thun thun thun |    din din din din na na na na | etc.

– The use of dhin naka is very prominent and important and is the special feature of this gharana. Its used more than its used in any other gharanas.

Please note that the bols or strokes mentioned in the post are pakahwaj bols, please refer to few of the videos added on this blog to listen to the samples.

Nathdwara Gharana & Parampara

Sri Nathdwara Pakhawaj Parampara

Pakhawaj tradition in Jaipur is centuries old and as described in the ‘Mridang Sagar’ by Pt. Ghanshyam Das Ji, this parampara started in Amer city of Rajasthan by Pt. Tulsidas Ji.

This parampara was developed in Jaipur and since last two centuries has flourished in Sri Nathdwara.

There were several excellent pakhawaj player in Pt. Tulsidas’s family lineage such as Sri Har Bhagat, Sri Chabeel Das, Sri Fakir Das etc. however Pt. Roop Ram Ji from the fifth generation of this family gave this parampara a new signature.

Pt. Roop Ram Ji (birth A.D. 1735) a resident of Amer, came to Jodhpur from Jaipur and served the Jaipur court. He was proficient with hundreds of parans played with Tandav and Raamlila. Around A.D. 1803, Pt. Roop Ram Ji came to Sri Nathdwara along with his young son Sri Vallabhdas Ji and started serving SriNath Ji under the direction of Sri 108 Bade Giridhari Ji Maharaj. Since then his parampara became famous as Nathdwara parampara.

Pt. Roop Ram Ji was a good friend of Pahad Singh Ji (from Bhagwan Das parampara of Akbar court) of Jodhpur darbar. He instructed his son Sri Vallabhdas to learn pakhawaj from Pahad Singh Ji. This is how Sri Vallabhdas Ji completed his pakhawaj learning under Sri Pahad Singh Ji with great efforts.

Sri Vallabhdas Ji had three sons, Sri Chaturbhuj, Sri Shankarlal & Sri Khemalal. Sri Khemalal Ji, based on his experiences and discussions with other musicians, started writing the famous book ‘Mridang Sagar’. Mridang Sagar is a compilation of big taal chakras, matra bheds etc. which were gathered from a lot of old scriptures and also some of his new compositions. Due to untimely demise of Khemalal Ji, the book Mridang Sagar remained incomplete till many years till his nephew and son of Sri Shankar Lal ji, Sri Ghanshyam Das Ji completed it and published it based on his learning from his father.

Sri Purshottam Das Ji was the son of Sri Ghanshyam Das Ji and the eldest member of Nathdwara Parampara. He was an excellent pakhawaj player and was considered amongst the best players of the country. Since he was five years old, he was able to recite and play various taals in traditional ways. Sri Ghanshyam Das Ji used to take little Purshottam along to the temple while playing for the Lord. When he was just nine, his father left for the heavenly abode and he was burdened to carry the parampara. He successfully managed to carry it on his shoulders and served at Sri Nathdwara Temple following his ancestors for many years. Later he joined Bhartiya Kala Kendra and Kathak Kendra at Delhi and finally came back to Sri Nathdwara and left his body there.

He had no son but he trained and developed many good  disciples including Sri Prakash Chandra, Sri Shyamlal and Sri Ramkrishna (Nathdwara), Sri Durgalal, Maharaj Chatrapati Singh, Sri Harikrishna Bahera, Pt. Totaram Sharma etc. (The list is long so please forgive me if I’ve missed on any names).

In my next posts, I’ll write more about the pakhawaj playing style of Nathdwara Parampara.