Raga Behag (Vilambat Teentaal - 16 Beats / Khayal Ang - Vocal Style)

Nishat Khan released Sitar Recital (Raga Behag, Raga Bhatiyar) on CD in 1991 under the EMI label. The album features two raga performances in the Hindustani classical tradition, showcasing Khan’s mastery of the sitar in the gayaki ang (vocal-style) approach.

The opening track presents Raga Behag in vilambat teentaal, a slow-tempo composition set to a 16-beat rhythmic cycle. Khan interprets the raga in the khayal vocal style, emphasizing melodic phrasing and expressive ornamentation characteristic of the Etah-Binkar gharana. The performance adheres to the structural conventions of alaap-jor-jhala followed by the composed bandish, though specific lyrical or compositional details of the track remain undocumented in available sources.

The album’s second raga, Raga Bhatiyar, follows the initial track, but publicly accessible records do not specify its tempo, taal, or stylistic treatment. The recording session’s production credits, accompanying artists, and technical personnel are similarly unlisted in standard references. Sitar Recital exemplifies Khan’s early commercial output as a soloist, predating his later collaborations with Western fusion and world music projects.

EMI’s 1991 release marked one of Khan’s initial forays into studio-recorded classical albums, distinguishing itself from his prior live performances and later experimental works. The CD format allowed for high-fidelity capture of the sitar’s tonal nuances, including the instrument’s sympathetic strings and meend (glissando) techniques. No reissues or remastered editions of this specific recording have been confirmed in subsequent catalogs.