Though he staunchly believed in paddhati, his sangeet bore his unique stamp. His last performance was through Facebook Live in April, when he sang for the annual Sankat Mochan Festival in Varanasi, a concert he had never missed in the last 46 years. Jasraj had no qualms about moving with the changing times.
The night before he passed away in New Jersey, he was teaching his disciples via Skype. It can be your best companion at every point in life, he said during the interview. It brought out every shade of emotion in ragas and bonded beautifully with the swars. It moved effortlessly across octaves, as it had over the past eight decades. Since he infused his music with bhakti, it had the ability to spiritually elevate the believers among his legions of listeners even while comforting others with its rich melody and soothing laya. When you sing for the paramatma, your music reaches the atma. I see Krishna in all of you, he told the full house, leaving many teary-eyed. Chad de vairne yaari song djpunjab amar singh With each composition, he built a meditative mood and, along with the maestro, the audience internalised every swar and shabd. That evening when the doyen of the Mewati gharana walked on to the stage, dressed in a bright raw silk dhoti, kurta, and black waistcoat, he appeared frail and exhausted after his long flight from the U.S.īut when, after greeting the audience with raised arms and an ebullient Jai Ho, he began to sing, his face relaxed into bliss, as he brought alive every note with passion and elan.
On a pleasantly cool day in November 2019, after what would be his last concert in Chennai, when I asked him how he felt about being the first Indian to receive this honour, he had replied matter-of-factly, The greatness of our music extends beyond the sky. When he rendered Om Namo Bhagwate Vasudevaya in raag Bhimpalasi, Mero Allah Meherbaan in raag Bhairav or Mata Kalika in raag Adana, classical music shed its elitist tag and gained mass appeal, while his devotional music won over even connoisseurs with its sophistication and structure.Īnd when a minor planet, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, was named Panditjasraj by the International Astronomical Union, it seemed to suggest the transcendental effect of his music. He had just returned to Mumbai after a concert in Dubai and was preparing to leave on a three-month concert tour of the U.S.Īpologetic for delaying the interview, he said, Jab Mumbai me hota hoon samay nahi milta. Jasraj made classical music accessible to those who did not understand its nuances.
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