Raga Darbari: Drut in Teentaal

Pannalal Ghosh performed Raga Darbari: Drut in Teentaal as Track B1 on the 1990 cassette release Flute Pioneer. His Master’s Voice issued the album in India. The composition showcases Ghosh’s adaptation of the bansuri to Hindustani classical music, emphasizing the raga’s expansive and meditative character within the 16-beat teentaal rhythmic cycle. The recording captures Ghosh’s signature phrasing and breath control, techniques he developed to extend the flute’s expressive range in classical performance.

The album Flute Pioneer compiles Ghosh’s work as a foundational figure in elevating the bansuri from folk instrumentation to a concert-stage soloist role. The label released the cassette during a period of renewed interest in archival recordings of 20th-century Hindustani maestros. Specific session details, accompanying artists, and production personnel for this track remain undocumented in widely accessible sources. The raga performance adheres to the darbari kanhada tradition, characterized by deep, resonant komal ni and komal dha notes that define its gravitational samvadi-swar relationships.

Ghosh’s interpretation on this track reflects his broader influence on subsequent generations of flute players, including Harprasad Chaurasia and Raghunath Seth, who cited his innovations in tone production and raga elaboration. The cassette format of Flute Pioneer aligned with the era’s dominant audio medium in India, though later reissues on compact disc or digital platforms are not verified in available records. The album cover and liner notes, where present, typically feature minimalist design elements focused on Ghosh’s portrait and instrument, reinforcing his legacy as a soloist and composer.

No live performance date or original recording venue for this specific track is confirmed. The 1990 release date indicates a posthumous compilation, as Ghosh died in 1960. His Master’s Voice, a subsidiary of EMI, frequently curated such anthologies to preserve classical legacies during the late 20th century. The track’s duration and structural divisions (e.g., alaap, jor, jhala) are not explicitly detailed in standard discographic references, though the drut (fast) tempo section suggests an advanced stage of raga development with intricate taan patterns and rhythmic improvisation.