At
FAME we believe the first priority is to prepare a new generation of discerning listeners for the future. Without an appreciative audience good performers will disappear. Only noise shall remain.
Help propagate the FAME message. This is what we are saying to young people who have been deprived of music as part of their
education.
Would you enjoy watching chess or cricket if you did not know the rules of the game? Probably not.
Music is much more powerful than chess and cricket – you can enjoy it without knowing anything about its rules. But can you imagine how much your enjoyment would increase if you were familiar with its vocabulary and grammar? Or how much your performance would improve if you
were an aspiring performer? Don’t take our word for it – ask the great ghazal singers.
Is music very difficult to learn? Think again. It is hard work becoming a good cricketer or chess player. It is not all difficult to understand the rules of chess or cricket. It is the same with music. It is very easy to acquire the essential knowledge that would enhance your appreciation of music.
Think of music as a language. If you can learn English with its 26-letter alphabet and complicated grammar you can learn the language of music that has only 7 letters in its alphabet. Yes, just 7 – Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni (or Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti, it doesn’t really matter which you learn).
In five minutes you can tell the difference between Sa and Re and in one hour you will be able to
explain the difference between Malkauns and Kaushik Dhani. It is plain sailing from there on – the more you learn, the more you will enjoy.
You don’t punish your stomach with a lifetime of plain food – a gourmet meal once in a while is a great treat. Don’t punish your ears with a lifetime of plain music – try gourmet music for a change. Once you have tasted it you will realize what you
have been missing. Think Nihari, think Sri Pai, think Purya Kalyan. You are not born liking them – all of them take time to grow on you.
FAME has a number of exciting and surprising initiatives in the pipeline. If this message appeals to you join hands with us – contribute your ideas, talent, and time. Or set up a FAME chapter and do things your own way.
Dr. Samia Altaf MD, MPH
President,
FAME-Foundation
for the Advancement of Music Education
Washington DC
USA
Learn Classical Music - Lessons
In this section we will learn historical development of all genres of
classical music from origin to modern day and the basics of classical music.
Raagas with their characteristics, your favorite artists their gharanas with
profiles, articles, reviews and images, also about the instruments used in
classical music and their most famous exponents.
These
lessons are dedicated to our very own honorable Samia Altaf, who reminded me
of my imperative duty towards our passion.
To her I am just Mad-Crazy-Nuts, but for me she is a life defining
mentor, a guru, a teacher, a guide, a friend, a counselor, a great human
being, a friend of mankind, a soul mate and a confidant. May God be with her
where ever she is, and bless her with more success, honor & glory, Amen.
My Dear Samia Sahiba,
I admire, appreciate, respect, care, love and believe in you because you are
different & unique. Mad-Crazy-Nuts are the three marvelous lifetime
achievement awards for me, thank you for giving me the honors.
I am proud of you and your achievements, and will be most delighted to
welcome you at NASTAC as 'Director Research & Development' in the days to
come, if God willing.
Nadeem Zaigham
Publisher INTELLECT & Director NASTAC
- Honorable Ustad
Allah Rakha Sahib
Once in a great while, there emerges a
musician who, through his genius, injects that certain spark necessary to
elevate an instrument to another level of expression and appreciation. For
tabla, Ustad Allah Rakha was such an artist, having brought his instrument a
stature and respect never before enjoyed. A disciple of Mian Kader Baksh,
the great guru of the Punjab gharana, Ustad Allah Rakha was, in his lifetime,
the most celebrated exponent of this style.
Video:
Ustad Allah Rakha - Tabla
Courtesy: YouTube
Ustad Allah Rakha was born in 1919 in Phagwal, a small village in Jammu, the
eldest son in a family of seven brothers. From his childhood, it was clear
that he was special. Though his family were all soldiers and farmers, his
interests lay elsewhere. For hours he would watch the traveling natak
company perform their dramas, especially interested in the tabla player
performing with the company. At other times, he would sit by the river,
seeing a face on the water, and a voice inside him would tell him to seek
this man out. This inner voice, at the age of eleven, led him to Lahore
where he met the man with the face in his dreams. Mian Kader Baksh then
became his guru and began his formal training in the art of tabla playing.
Soon the young Allarakha became the toast of every musical gathering in town
and was offered a post at All India Radio, Lahore, where he worked for six
years, after which he was transferred to Delhi and then to Bombay. Since
Allarakha had also received extensive vocal training from the legendary
Patiala guru, Ustad Aashiq Ali Khan, he arrived in Bombay prepared in both
the rhythmic and melodic aspects of music.
In Bombay, his talent as a composer brought him in touch with the film world
where he scored music for over twenty-five films with great success. He had
many silver jubilee hits like "Maa Baap", "Ghar Ki Laaj", "Sabak", "Sati
Anusuya", "Khandan", "Madari", "Alam Ara", "Jagga", "Bewafa" and many
others. This, however, did not take him away from his tabla. He continued
performing in major festivals all across the country and eventually chose to
give up films and exclusively pursue his classical career. As an
accompanist, he enjoyed a rare versatility, being equally at home with vocal
music, instrumental music, Kathak dance, and as a soloist. His thirty-year
association with Pandit Ravi Shankar was well known for its hallmark
accomplishment of bringing Hindustani music to the far corners of the world,
receiving the highest accolades from audiences and critics abroad. His
consistently brilliant performances made the tabla a familiar percussion
instrument the world over.
As a performer, Ustad Allarakha was famous for his improvisations, his
exceptional qualities of freshness and proportion, and his exquisite tone
production effected by a technique which he continued to refine until his
death. Moreover, he developed a playing style which is a virtual reference
for tabla players of the present generation. He was the recipient of many
awards and titles including Padmashree, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the
Indo-American Achievement Award, the Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar and a
first-ever gold disc for a classical recording, to name but a few.
In 1985, he founded the Ustad Allarakha Institute of Music to train young
tabla players in the tradition of the Punjab gharana. Also at this time, his
duet performance, always popular in India, with son and chief disciple,
Zakir Hussain, grew to international prominence with regular world tours. He
toured worldwide with Zakir, and also in trio with his younger son Fazal
Qureshi, until 1996, when he decided to limit his touring to India. For the
last four years of his life, he concentrated on teaching and traveled often
in India, usually to accept awards and appear at major classical festivals.
His rapturous tabla solo performances still in demand, he continued to
perform until the end of his life.
Ustad Allah Rakha died on February 3, 2000, truly one of the most pivotal and
influential artists to have emerged from India in our time.
Samia Altaf
These
lessons are dedicated to our very own honorable Samia Altaf, who reminded me
of my imperative duty towards our passion.
To her I am just Mad-Crazy-Nuts, but for me she is a life defining
mentor, a guru, a teacher, a guide, a friend, a counselor, a great human
being, a friend of mankind, a soul mate and a confidant. May God be with her
where ever she is, and bless her with more success, honor & glory, Amen. 
Once in a great while, there emerges a
musician who, through his genius, injects that certain spark necessary to
elevate an instrument to another level of expression and appreciation. For
tabla, Ustad Allah Rakha was such an artist, having brought his instrument a
stature and respect never before enjoyed. A disciple of Mian Kader Baksh,
the great guru of the Punjab gharana, Ustad Allah Rakha was, in his lifetime,
the most celebrated exponent of this style.
Soon the young Allarakha became the toast of every musical gathering in town
and was offered a post at All India Radio, Lahore, where he worked for six
years, after which he was transferred to Delhi and then to Bombay. Since
Allarakha had also received extensive vocal training from the legendary
Patiala guru, Ustad Aashiq Ali Khan, he arrived in Bombay prepared in both
the rhythmic and melodic aspects of music. 
As a performer, Ustad Allarakha was famous for his improvisations, his
exceptional qualities of freshness and proportion, and his exquisite tone
production effected by a technique which he continued to refine until his
death. Moreover, he developed a playing style which is a virtual reference
for tabla players of the present generation. He was the recipient of many
awards and titles including Padmashree, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the
Indo-American Achievement Award, the Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar and a
first-ever gold disc for a classical recording, to name but a few.