About Musing Surbahar - Raga Miyan Ki Todi
Musing Surbahar – Raga Miyan Ki Todi is a 2010 digital album featuring a solo performance by sitar and surbahar exponent Manilal Nag. The release centers on a single extended rendition of Raga Miyan Ki Todi, a prominent raga in the Hindustani classical tradition associated with the morning hours and characterized by its intricate melodic phrasing and emotional depth.
Manilal Nag recorded the performance in a studio setting, emphasizing the surbahar—a bass variant of the sitar known for its resonant, meditative tonal qualities. The album captures a full alaap-jor-jhala exploration of the raga, followed by a structured development that includes slow and fast gat compositions in vilambit and drut tempos. Accompaniment details remain undocumented, but the recording adheres to the conventional format of a solo instrumental recital with tanpura drone support.
The album released under the label Questz World in 2010 as a digital-only publication. No physical media or alternate editions are confirmed. The tracklist consists of one continuous piece titled Raga Miyan Ki Todi, with a total runtime exceeding 60 minutes. The recording date and specific session musicians, if any, are not publicly disclosed.
Manilal Nag, a disciple of the Senia-Maihar gharana, was known for his mastery of both sitar and surbahar. This release exemplifies his interpretive approach to dhrupad-ang gayaki-style instrumental music, prioritizing sustained note development and rhythmic precision. The album serves as a documented example of his late-career work, though broader reception or critical analysis of this particular recording is not widely archived.
The label Questz World specialized in Indian classical and devotional music during the 2000s and early 2010s, distributing digital releases through online platforms. Further production credits, engineering details, or liner notes for Musing Surbahar are not available in public records.