Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan

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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 early and middle 20th century. Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan belonged to Patiala Gharana of Hindustani classical music.

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 influential 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 Munawar Ali Khan.

Today, the Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Yaadgar Sabha, founded by his disciple Malti Gilani, keeps his music and memory alive. It aims to promote Hindustani classical music and organises many concerts to this end. Its primary aim, however, is to provide medical aid to ailing musicians. The Sabha organises a Sabrang Utsav every year in the memory of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.

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The Bade Ghulam Ali Khan's Grandsons have their homepage Jawaad Ali Khan & Mazhar Ali Khan Website Homepage please visit for more uptodate info on Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Patiala Kasur Gharana


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