About Rāg Bhīmpalāsī / Rāg Tilak Kamod
Rāg Bhīmpalāsī / Rāg Tilak Kamod is a studio album featuring North Indian classical music performed by sitarist Nishat Khan, surbahar player Irshad Khan, and tabla artist Shafaatullah Khan. The recording was released in 1998 under the label Nimbus Records in CD format. The album comprises two extended raga performances, adhering to the traditional ālāp-jor-jhālā and gat-tān structures characteristic of the dhrupad and khayāl styles.
Nishat Khan performs on the sitar, delivering the melodic framework for both ragas. Irshad Khan accompanies on the surbahar, a bass sitar variant, providing harmonic depth and rhythmic counterpoint. Shafaatullah Khan contributes tabla percussion, maintaining the tāl cycles and improvisational dialogue with the melodic instruments. The recording captures a live-studio ambiance, emphasizing acoustic clarity and dynamic interplay between the artists.
The album opens with Rāg Bhīmpalāsī, a late-afternoon raga associated with the Kafi thāt. The performance explores the raga’s komal gandhār and komal nishād swaras, progressing through vilambit (slow) and drut (fast) sections. The second track, Rāg Tilak Kamod, belongs to the Khamaj thāt and is traditionally rendered during the late evening. The artists emphasize its shuddha dhaivat and komal nishād phrases, concluding with an intricate jhālā segment.
The release date aligns with the album’s official distribution in 1998. Nimbus Records produced the recording as part of its series on Indian classical music, though specific session details or additional production personnel remain undocumented in available sources. The album serves as a representative example of the gayaki ang (vocal-style) sitar tradition, particularly within the Imdadkhani gharana lineage to which the Khan brothers belong.