# Pandit Pran Nath



## Morimur

*MELA Foundation*
Excerpt taken from: http://www.melafoundation.org/ppn.htm

*Pandit Pran Nath (1918 - 1996)*

Born to a cultured family in Lahore, Pran Nath grew up in an atmosphere of live performances of the masters of traditional vocal music. Illustrious musicians were invited by his grandfather to perform at their family home every evening. He was singing by the age of six and before long decided, against his mother's wishes, to devote his life to music. He left home at age thirteen and studied for twenty years as a disciple of Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan, the foremost master of the Kirana gharana, which descends from Gopal Nayak (ca. 1300), and is also known as the style of Krishna. Pran Nath's performances on All India Radio since 1937 and at Music Conferences throughout India established his reputation as a leading interpreter of Kirana style with an exceptional knowledge of traditional compositions and the delineation of raga.

His uncompromising adherence to the authentic rendering of the traditional ragas and his unwillingness to change his style to meet modern tastes for rhythmic and popular elements contributed to his reputation as a "musician's musician" credited with a voluminous knowledge of hundreds of ragas and several times as many compositions. Many well known professional singers, including Nazakat and Salamat Ali Khan and Bhimsen Joshi, came to him to perfect their understanding of particular ragas. From 1960 through 1970 he taught the advanced classes in Hindustani vocal music at Delhi University.

Pandit Pran Nath's first appearance in the West in 1970 essentially introduced the vocal tradition of Hindustani classical music to the U.S. He has since performed throughout America, as well as in Germany, Italy, Scandinavia, Iran and France, becoming the most influential exponent of the Kirana style. His 1971 morning performance at Town Hall, New York City was the first concert of Morning Ragas to be presented in the U.S. Subsequently, he introduced and elaborated to Western audiences the concept of performing ragas at the proper time of day by scheduling entire series of concerts at special hours. Many students and professional musicians have come to him in America to learn about the vast system of raga and to improve their musicianship.


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## millionrainbows

Hey morimur! I bet I'm the only other member who has heard of Pran Nath! I had the old Douglas LP. found it in a cut-out bin. Then I got the CD.

I read about La Mont Young's discipleship with him; it was very harsh. La Mont Young must have had too big of an ego, because Pran Nath treated him like crap. Anyway, an interesting story. Young collects tambouras now.

That looks like Young on the left, playing tamboura. Above that, it looks like Terry Riley playing tabla


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## Morimur

millionrainbows said:


> Hey morimur! I bet I'm the only other member who has heard of Pran Nath! I had the old Douglas LP. found it in a cut-out bin. Then I got the CD.
> 
> I read about La Mont Young's discipleship with him; it was very harsh. La Mont Young must have had too big of an ego, because Pran Nath treated him like crap. Anyway, an interesting story. Young collects tambouras now.
> 
> That looks like Young on the left, playing tamboura. Above that, it looks like Terry Riley playing tabla


I don't know the story of Young's discipleship under Nath but I am sure he had a gigantic ego and probably still does, but most artists are egoists anyway. Although Young is a great composer, his singing pales in comparison to Nath's-the former's voice sounds like a little girl's when put up against his teacher's.


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## tortkis

millionrainbows said:


> That looks like Young on the left, playing tamboura. Above that, it looks like Terry Riley playing tabla


I have a 2-CD set _Midnight_ which includes that 1976 recording. It is mesmerizing. The performers are as following.

CD 1: 4 VIII 71 SF
Prandit Pran Nath, voice
Terry Riley, tabla
Ann Riley, tambura
Simone Forti, tambura

CD 2: 21 VIII 76 NYC
Prandit Pran Nath, voice
K. Paramjyoti, tabla
La Monte Young, tambura
Marian Zazeela, tambura


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## millionrainbows

I was unaware of that one. It looks interesting.


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