Eight Hindustani Classical Tracks I Discovered In 2021

Many moments of joy in an otherwise tumultuous year came from discovering and surfing through Prasar Bharti's channel, Raagam, on YouTube.

Through this, my humble, urgent, and constant submission to them on social media was that many tracks needed cleaning up and remastering.

However, this Nat Bhairav by Pt Shivkumar Sharma is amongst the cleanest and clearest it can get.

But even so, I wasn't sure how a Nat Bhairav would sound on it. Until I heard this track, in my head, santoor was a perfect instrument to express ragas like Bageshri, Des, Jaijaiwanti.

Nat Bhairav is a raga dear to me. And hearing this track was like getting to know an old, old friend all over again; and in a way that reassures you that you were right about the person all along.

2. Madhmad Sarang by Ustad Bismillah Khan

A typical Madhmad Sarang gat.

One of the gems from the recently released videos by AIR Raagam.

One more from the AIR Raagam library. I hope Prasar Bharti puts out an opening for someone who needs to listen through their Hindustani classical library and classify the tracks. I am happily applying.

This is music in its purest form. Not punctuated or disturbed by language. Just music.

6. Bageshri (Abhang) by Pt Sanjeev Abhyankar

His is one voice that can hypnotise you and take you to a different 'state' from the first second. Take it from me, because something similar happened when I first heard this piece. All that is needed, is your undivided attention.

Out of all the tracks that I had the fortune of listening to this year, I am most grateful for this one. It would be a very, very difficult task to find a better Bageshri on YouTube.

8. Bhairavi by Pt Jasraj

There are two ways to look at it. One, what a shame that despite being a committed fan of Pt Jasraj, there were some tracks I hadn't heard before this year. Second, there are still some tracks of Pt Jasraj for me to discover and experience that feeling of hearing a beautiful melody for the first time.

I choose the second one.

Have a great 2022!