Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan
Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan (b.
Kasur, near
Lahore,
Punjab,
British India (now
Pakistan), c.
1902; d.
Hyderabad,
India,
April 25,
1968) was an
Indian vocalist, considered one of the finest representatives of the
Hindustani music tradition in the 20th century.
Bade Ghulam Ali Khan hailed from a West Punjabi family of musical heritage. Having lived a life of the greatest and worst experiences, Bade Ghulam Ali absorbed all his mental, physical and spiritual powers into the study and practice of music. By
1944, though still in the age of giant personalities like
Abdul Karim Khan,
Alladiya Khan and
Fayyaz Khan, he was considered by many as the uncrowned king of
Hindustani music. While some people go so far as referring to him as the
Tansen of the 20th century or as Nayak (great master of the music of the past and the future), he is undoubtedly one of the most proficient and influencial musicians of his time, along with
Amir Khan. He lived at various intervals in
Lahore,
Mumbai,
Kolkata and
Hyderabad. He remains the insipiration of a whole generation of top-ranking singers and performers in both
India and
Pakistan, including
Ghulam Ali (b. 1940), Pakistan's leading ghazal singer.
Upon the
partition of India in
1947, Khan returned to his home in
Pakistan, but returned to
India some time afterwards to permanently reside there. In
1957, he acquired Indian citizenship. Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was reluctant to sing for film but sang two songs for the movie
Mughal-e-Azam where his voice was represented as
Tansen's voice by music director
Naushad. In an attempt to dissuade Naushad by asking an obnoxiously high price, he reportedly ended up charging
Rs. 25,000/- per song when the going rate for popular playback singers such as
Lata and
Rafi was below Rs. 500/- per song. He died in Hyderabad in
1968 after a prolonged illness which left him partially paralysed in his last years, nevertheless he continued to sing and perform in public with support from his son
Munnawwar Ali Khan.
*
Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan on MusicalNirvana.com*
2 articles about the Ustad* Sapra, Vinita (2004).
Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan: His Contribution to Indian Music. Delhi, India: Raj Publications. ISBN 8186208321.
*
Immortal-e-Azam*
Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan recordings available on www.sarangi.info*
Ghulam Ali
