Farida Khanum

One of the best ghazal singers. She has a voice which is sensuous, expressive yet subtle. She has a unique rendition technique where she uses expression as a perfect foil to her mastery over classical music. She uses lay which is quite difficult to follow(this becomes evident when you try to sing her compositions with your friend accompanying in tabla ;)). Her voice is so sweet that it blends with sarangee like suger in milk. My personal favorites are:

1. Aaj jaane ki zid na karo.
2. Mere ham nafas
3. Afat ki shaukian
4. Mohabbot karnewale
5. Uzr aane me bhi hain

Do dil do rahen- Tribute to Mehdi Hassan

This album is a tribute to Mehdi Hassan. Some of the leading ghazal singers from India & Pakistan sang in it. Here is my assessment for them(Strictly based on this album. I like them all otherwise):

Jagjit Singh: Same compositions; disappointing(the compositions are his signature style melodious but same. I was expecting him to render Mehdi Saabs compositions like others did.).

Ghulam Ali: Even more disappointing. Again probably his own composition. Same style. Lot of techniques very little soul. Even his voice seems to have lost its trademark sweetness. How one wish Ghulam Ali singing a Mehdi Hassan composition.

Abida Parveen: Great rendition. Mehdi Hassans compositions in her own gayaki. Great selection of Ghazals."Khuli jo aankh" is truly out of this world.

Hariharan: The best. Great selection, superb rendition. No unnecessary classical showoffs.

Suresh Wadkar: Nice rendition. "Dekhna unka" was great. His soft voice does complete justice to the song.

Jaspinder Nirula: Surprise package. "Jab ghata koi" is beautifully rendered.

Anup Jalota: Very nice rendition in "Khwab juda".

Pankaj Udhas: Complete wastage of disk space(sorry PU fans!).

Humaira Channa: Very nice. She stuck to the original compositions.

Kamraan Hassan: Good in "Tanhaa tanhaa". But little bit of dramaabazi is there in the song.

Overall: This is a must buy album. According to me Hariharan is the best with Abida Parveen a close second.

Ek Hi Baat Zamane Ki- Mohd Rafi Ghazal

Listen to his rendition. He could have given all the ghazal maestros run for their money.

Ustad Amanat Ali Khan

I have only recently listened to him and was floored immediately. His style of singing is impeccable. His voice performs the nuances of sur with great ease and he has a great sense of discipline which many of the classical singers forget while singing ghazals. Watch the link below:

Ghulam Ali & Jagjit Singh - Kolkata Concert

I was there at Nazrul Mancha last night for the concert. It was not as great experience as it used to be. Both the masters are past their prime. However, Jagjitji's performance was better than Ghulam Ali. Ghulam Ali saab's voice was tired and out of tune some times. I think all his fans who has seen him in earlier concerts singing effortlessly were disappointed. Only at a later stage in few ghazals like "Kitni muddat baad mile ho" and timeless "Dil mein ek leher si" one could get the glimpse of old Ghulam Ali.

Jagjitji's performance was marginally better. The best part was that he sang some ghazals which he rarely sings nowadays "Yeh inayaten ghazab ki" and "Zindegi tune lahu leke diya". Also there was a soulful rendition of thumri "ab ke sjan ghar aja". Jajijitji's voice also looked tired but his tonal quality is still intact. Also he has the advantage of singing relatively easier compositions than Ghulam Ali saab.

However, the most disappointing part was the short duration of the concert. In fact, Ghulam Ali saab had to cut short his part just when his voice was improving (as we know any senior artist "gala garam karne mein thoda time lagta hain" specially when he is aging) to accommodate Jagjitji. And then Jagjitji had to rush up his rendition and had to reduce number of shers for time constraint.

I think there is no point to have these legends together if you don't have enough time in hand. Both has large number of committed fans who like one of them and unfortunately dislike the other. Both the groups in this case feel cheated. Only guys like me who likes both of them get their paisa vasul to some extent.