Jasrangi Jugalbandi: a vocal Kaleidoscope created & popularized by Pt Jasraj
Thankgiving 2024 was magical in Hyderabad. I experienced a spellbinding Jasrangi in two of my favorite raags. Melody across musical boundaries, presented by Durga Jasraj Ji.
Yes, Bandish bandits season 2 is paying homage to this amazing song form. Created and popularized by Sangeet Marthand Pt Jasraj-ji. In this performance two singers, or instrumentalists too I presume, perform two different raags at different pitches. In western music terms, one of the singers is harmonizing on the perfect 4th. But her harmony shares notes with another raag, so she sings that instead of what the primary performer is covering with their raag. Blending two different moods, and two different experiences simulataneously. It sounds as haunting as it reads.
I heard it first locally when two friends attempted it in Downtown San Jose. Almost magically, in under two months, I witnessed another at the Grand 52nd Pt Maniram Pt Motiram Sangeeth Samaroh in Hyderabad. Please watch it while the video is up. Singing starts around the 35:00 mark. Send this to your friends who want a longer-form introduction to Jasrangi.
Tap Share to send this to someone who will love it. Season’s greetings!
I’ll continue to write about attending this event over five days, one masterful act after another. I was lucky to be 10 feet away from some stellar musicians, including two recent Grammy Winners, during rehearsals and experience all their anxieties and concerns about the quality of the performance. It was a pleasure to witness them in their element and see their endless curiosity about music.
Jasrangi is about balance,
..and cheating the ear if you’re one of the singers. I didn’t think you could be so confident while not straying from the Shadaj or the Tonic. I discovered the fantastic performers - Sai Panchal and Vilina Patra singing Puriya Dhanashree & Shuddh Dhaivat ki Lalit. It's the best thing I’ve seen Live this year.
Balance is at the center of survival. It’s inherent in our surroundings, in our senses. Almost everything in life feels like it is calculated down to the last detail.
Dance is a physical manifestation of this balance, often joyous. Here’s a Chola Era bronze statue of Nataraja, Shiva as a dancing warrior in the Tandav pose, carved to demonstrate to us 1000+ years later that, yes, we understood all this back then, too.
