Malkauns

Malkauns is a raga-based instrumental composition performed by sitarist Imrat Khan. The track appears as side B, track three on the 1969 album Indian Music, released by Standard Music Library in a 12\" vinyl format. The recording spans 4 minutes and 39 seconds.

Imrat Khan rendered the piece in the Malkauns raga, a pentatonic structure associated with the late evening or night in Hindustani classical tradition. The album belongs to a period when Khan actively contributed to global dissemination of Indian classical music through international recordings. Indian Music served as one of several releases under Standard Music Library that featured traditional raga performances for Western audiences.

The vinyl release included no publicly documented session details, accompanying artists, or production credits. The label marketed the album as part of a series introducing Indian classical forms, though specific distribution scope and commercial reception remain undocumented. The track exemplifies Khan’s interpretation of the raga through sitar, adhering to the alap-jor-jhala framework typical of instrumental renditions from the era.

No reissues or digital remasters of Indian Music have been confirmed in authoritative sources. The original pressing exists as a collector’s item, with the track occasionally referenced in discographies of Imrat Khan’s early career. The composition’s structure and Khan’s phrasing align with the Etawah gharana style, of which he was a prominent exponent.