sound of music ii ppt

sound of music ii ppt

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  SOUND OF MUSIC- II THE SHEHNAI BISMILLAH KHAN
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  Theme of thelesson: Ustaad Bismillah Khan’s simplicity, secular approach, passion towards music and dedicated practice helped him gain success. Secular Approach to music sharpened his skills in it. Message: To develop love towards one’s country and instil patriotism in oneself. Music is the language of love. It is the language of humanity not of any religion
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  • CONTENT ANAYSIS •Origin of Shehnai: • The Mughal ruler Aurangzeb did not allow the pungi be played in his royal residence because he felt that it had a shrill, unpleasant sound. Pungi was a musical instrument which became the generic name for reeded noisemakers. Pungi is a broad term for any type of instrument which uses wind to produce sound. No one thought that one day such an instrument which made unpleasant sound would be revived (Brought back to life) and played which would be liked by the audience. • There was a barber who belonged to a family of professional musicians who decided to improve the tonal quality (sound). This barber took a pipe which was a hollow (empty from inside) stem. It was longer and broader than the pungi. He made seven holes on the body of the pipe. Then he blew air into the pipe and closed and opened different holes. He found that soft and melodious sounds were produced when he did like this.
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  • When thebarber played this instrument in the royal court, everyone liked the sound produced by it. The royal court thought that this instrument was different from the pungi and so it should have a different name and was named ‘Shehnai’. • The story behind the name given to this instrument is that since this instrument was played for the first time in the royal residence of the Shah, Shah was a name given to Mughal kings. As the ‘nai’, (that is the Indian term used for a barber) had played it for the first time, they called it ‘shehnai’. • The sound of the shehnai began to be considered auspicious (promising to bring good fortune) and was played on good occasions. And for this reason, it is still played in temples and is an indispensable component of any North Indian wedding. • In the past, the shehnai was part of the naubat or ensemble (pronounced ‘onsomble’) of nine traditional instruments at royal courts. Earlier Shehnai was played only in temples and weddings. The credit for bringing this instrument onto the classical stage goes to Ustaad Bismillah Khan.
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  • Bismillah Khan’sChildhood: • Bismillah Khan was born on 21 March 1916 in a family of Musicians in Bihar. His grandfather was a great shehnai player. He played the shehnai in the court of the Bhojpur king. His father and all paternal ancestors were also great shehnai players. • Bismillah Khan started learning music at an early age. When he was just 3 years’ old, he saw his maternal uncles play the shehnai and was attracted towards it and wanted to learn playing it. Bismillah Khan started going with his uncle, Ali Bux to the Vishnu temple in Benaras who used to play the shehnai at the Vishnu temple of Benaras. When uncle Ali Bux played the shehnai, Bismillah Khans would sit there for hours, listening to him. • Gradually Bismillah Khan also started learning playing the shehnai and he would practice throughout the day.
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  • When BismillahKhan was five years old, he would go to the Biharji temple and he would sing the song – ‘Chaita’ in Bhojpuri language. When he would finish reciting the song, he would get a big laddu as reward by Local maharaja for singing the chaita that weighed 1.25 kg • Ustaad Bismillah Khan remained in Benaras for many years. He would visit the temple of Balaji, temple of Managala Maiya and would remain on the bank of river Ganga which inspired him to invent many ragas that were considered impossible to be produced by a shehnai. Ustaad Bismillah Khan worked hard, and invented different sounds with the shehnai.
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  • Bismillah Khan’scontribution in the field of music: • When Bismillah Khan was 14 years old, he accompanied his maternal uncle, Ali Bux to the Allahabad Music Conference. Ustaad Faiyaz Khan, renowned classical vocalist, was impressed by his performance and said that if he would work hard like that, he would become famous in the field of music. • When the All India Radio started at Lucknow, Ustaad Bismillah Khan started performing on air. • Ustaad Bismillah Khan was the first Indian to greet the entire nation on the occasion of Independence through his shehnai from the Red Fort of India. The Raag that was played by Ustaad Bismillah Khan was Raag Kafi. After his performance, the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru gave his famous speech - ‘Tryst with Destiny’. • Vijay Bhatt, a Bollywood film director liked the sound of the shehnai played by Bismillah Khan and made a movie named ‘Gunj Uthi Shehnai.’ • There was a song in movie Gunj Uthi Shehnai named “Dil ka khilona hai toot gaya….”. It was composed by Ustaad Bismillah Khan and became a chartbuster breaking all records. Although this song was a chartbuster, Bismillah Khan got a lot of success in this film, he composed music for only two films. The names of the movies were - Gunj Uthi Shehnai made by Vijay Bhatt and a Kannada Movie made by Vikram Srinivas called ‘Sanadhi Apanna’.
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  • Performances &Recognitions • He performed in many places all over the world • in USA at the Lincoln Centre Hall • at Montreal, Australia in the World Exposition, • at the Cannes Art Festival , • in Japan at the Osaka Trade Fair. • at Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, the King of Afghanistan gifted him many things like Persian carpets, etc being impressed by him. • an auditorium has been named after him in Teheran, Iran.
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  • Awards ReceivedBy Bismillah Khan: • Bismillah Khan got a lot of recognition and was honoured with a lot of awards. He received India’s highest civilian award - Bharat Ratna in the year 2001. • National awards like the Padmashri, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan were conferred on him. • Bismillah Khan’s love towards his Country: • Although Ustaad Bismillah Khan ji had travelled all over the world, he was given so much respect and recognition, he remained rooted and attached to his birth place. • Once when his student wanted Ustaad Bismillah Khan to set up a shehnai school in USA and promised that he would recreate the temple of Benaras in America for Ustaad ji as he would miss it. Ustaad Bismillah Khan who was attached to River Ganga as well asked his student that would he transport the River Ganga also to America. So, he wanted to say that he could not leave India – He was attached not only to the temples of Benaras but also to the holy river Ganga.
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  • Religious barrierdidn’t affect his performances: • Ustaad Bismillah Khan was a perfect example of the rich cultural heritage of India. His work was beyond the religious barriers. Although he was a devout Muslim, he followed the Muslim laws but every morning he would play the shehnai at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, which was a Hindu temple. This shows that he did not have the barriers of religion in his mind. • Bismillah Khan’s Death: • Ustaad Bismillah Khan had been ill for a long time and he died on 21 August 2006 at the age of ninety. The entire country mourned the death of the legendary musician and he was given a state funeral. •
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  • Character Analysis: •USTAD BISMILLAH KHAN • Patriotic - Loved Motherland and hometown was yearning to return whenever he was out of the country to perform. Declined the offer of his student to head a music school in US. • Simple- Refused an offer in USA to head the Music School. Did not like the glamour and artificial world of film industry • Great Learner- watched his uncle Ali Bux since he was a child and learnt music from him since his childhood. • Hardworking & Patient- He kept working without any expectations • Original- Created his own music Practiced and invented various Ragas by playing Shehnai on the banks of river Ganga. • Liberal human – Respected all religions though he was a devout muslim, performed at various temples. • Passionate Musician- Was interested in music since his childhood and just followed his passion
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  Assignment I. Read theextract and answer the following questions ‘I just can’t come to terms with the artificiality and glamour of the film world’ a. Why couldn’t the speaker continue his journey in the film world ? b. Who is the speaker? c. Which movie was named after the instrument shehnai? Why was it named so?
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  II. Answer thefollowing questions in 30-40 words a. Where was the shehnai traditionally played? How did Bismillah khan change this? b. When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?
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  III. Answer in40-50 words a. . Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that Bismillah Khan loves India and Benaras. b. Where did Bismillah Khan play the shenai on 15th August, 1947? Why was the event historic?
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  IV. Answer in100-120 words a. Music speaks an universal language. Elucidate the above in context of the lesson.