Traversing through time and seasons with Rashid Khan's rendition of the Gaud Malhar raga

I heard this rendition by Rashid Khan of a composition in Gaud Malhar late last night and have probably listened to it five times since. It’s part of a punctuated by performances (a more accurate account of the programme would need me to phrase that the other way round) which – from the appearance of those taking part – must have been recorded by DD Bangla about 20 years ago. Like smoke, grey swirls have surfaced in the singer’s hair; over the years, they will give way to black. Rashid Khan, here, is in the first visible flowering of middle age: it gives his still-youthful face an inwardness and his music serenity. He was in very good voice that day.

Which day it was we don’t know – but, given he’s asked to sing so many Malhars (Miya; Ramdasi; Gaud) – we assume we’re in the rainy season. As the raga is a season- and time-related observance, we know this much when we hear a live recording of a khayal performance about...

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