Upon arrival in India in 1964 I went to All India Radio to try to get in touch with musicians. The first one I met was sitar and surbahar player Chandrasekhar Naringrekar who became my close friend. He brought me to my tabla guru Pandit Taranath and also to his guru Zia Mohiuddin Dagar in Chembur where I spent a lot of time with great musicians. Sadly Chandu passed away last year having been ill for several years.
Chandu instructing Gerge H.
The Dagar Family
One of the oldest and most influential Indian musical families with an unbroken history of court musicians back to the days of Tansen. Authorities in raag and specialists in Drupad, the oldest and most strict Hindustani classical music, I did spend a lot of time with late Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar and his brother Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar. I recorded them a lot and a few have been released on LP and CD, but I hope to have some more out within the near future. All of the illustrious family members below visited Ustad's house at one time or another and many sang at the intimate private concerts that took place every sunday night.
Ustad still played the sitar in the sixties
Zia Fariduddin Dagar
Z.F. Dagar and Z.M. Dagar
Ustads son Bahauddin Dagar
The formidable Dagar Brothers
(Moinuddin & Aminuddin) visited Ustad's as well as their younger brothers Zairuddin & Fayazuddin (Jr Dagar Brothers)
So did Rahimuddin Dagar and his son Fahimuddin Dagar (right)
Left, Sayeeduddin Dagar, still active.
Below you see three of Ustad's most brilliant students, violinist K. Shivakumar, and the sarodists K. Sridhar and Subash (here seen with the rare Sursingar).
Home
