Rãga Yaman

Rāga du début de la nuit is a studio album released in 1993 under the Adès label. The recording features a single extended performance of Rāga Yaman, a prominent rāga in the Hindustani classical tradition. The album adopts a CD format with a total duration of 1 hour, 3 minutes, and 27 seconds.

The performance centers on a duet between Ustad Sultan Khan and Zakir Hussain. Sultan Khan plays the sarangi, a bowed string instrument known for its expressive vocal-like timbre in North Indian classical music. Zakir Hussain contributes on the tabla, providing rhythmic accompaniment and improvisational interplay. The track captures the ālāp, jor, and jhālā sections of the rāga, followed by a composed theme (gat) and elaborations in madhyalaya (medium tempo) and drut (fast tempo) tāls.

The album title translates from French as \"Rāga of the Beginning of the Night,\" reflecting the traditional evening association of Rāga Yaman. The recording session location and production personnel remain undocumented in available sources. Adès, the label, specialized in world music and classical releases during the 1990s, though specific catalog details for this release are not widely published.

Notable aspects of the performance include Sultan Khan’s use of meend (sliding notes) and gamak (ornamentation) to emphasize the rāga’s characteristic phrases. Hussain’s accompaniment incorporates complex thekā patterns and spontaneous laggi sections. The collaboration highlights the improvisational dialogue between melody and percussion, a hallmark of Hindustani classical concerts.

The album serves as a documented example of Sultan Khan’s and Zakir Hussain’s work in the 1990s, a period marked by their international tours and cross-genre collaborations. No reissues or alternate editions of this recording have been confirmed in public records.