Shudh Sarang

Shudh Sarang is a classical khayal composition performed by Ustad Salamat Ali Khan in the raga Shudh Sarang. The track appears as the opening piece (A1) on the 1979 cassette release School of Music: Sham Chorasi, issued by EMI Classics.

The recording captures Khan’s rendition in the vilambit (slow) and drut (fast) sections, accompanied by traditional instrumental support. The album belongs to the Sham Chorasi series, which documents performances from the Sham Chorasi Gharana, a sub-style of the Gwalior gharana known for its emphasis on bol-baant (lyrical phrasing) and gayaki (vocal technique). The cassette format was standard for Indian classical releases of the period, and EMI Classics served as a primary distributor for archival and contemporary recordings in the genre.

Ustad Salamat Ali Khan (1934–2001) was a prominent exponent of the Sham Chorasi tradition, recognized for his command over taan (melodic improvisation) and layakari (rhythmic play). The track exemplifies his interpretive approach to Shudh Sarang, a raga associated with late evening performances and characterized by its use of komal re (flattened second) and teevra ma (sharp fourth). The recording date and session details remain undocumented in publicly available sources, but the album’s release aligns with Khan’s active period of international performances and studio work during the late 1970s.

The cassette includes no additional metadata on collaborating artists, though typical accompaniment for such recordings would feature tabla and tanpura. School of Music: Sham Chorasi forms part of a broader EMI Classics series that aimed to preserve and disseminate regional gharanas through commercial releases. The track’s duration and specific lyrical content are not specified in the available context.