Raga Bhoopali

Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan performed Raga Bhoopali in a 24-minute-03-second rendition released as the opening track of the compilation album The Great Heritage: Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. Saregama issued the recording on CD in 2010. The album preserves Khan’s khyal gayaki, characterized by intricate taans, bol-banao, and emotive phrasing rooted in the Patiala gharana tradition.

The track captures Khan’s command of Raga Bhoopali, a pentatonic raga in the Kalyan thaat traditionally performed in the late evening. The recording date remains undocumented, but the performance exemplifies his mature style from the mid-20th century. Saregama sourced the material from archival tapes, though specific session details or accompanying artists are not publicly verified.

The Great Heritage: Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan serves as a posthumous anthology curating his seminal works. The 2010 CD release followed earlier vinyl and cassette editions of his recordings, with Saregama retaining distribution rights. The album omits liner notes on individual tracks, leaving contextual metadata such as recording location or original release dates unconfirmed.

Khan’s interpretation of Raga Bhoopali adheres to the gharana’s emphasis on lyrical expansion and rhythmic flexibility. The composition unfolds in vilambit ektaal before transitioning to a drut teentaal section, a structure typical of his concert performances. No commercial singles or alternate versions of this specific recording exist outside the 2010 compilation.