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Zia Mohiuddin Dagar

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Zia Mohiuddin Dagar, Z. M. Dagar for short, was an Indian musician from the dhrupad tradition. He was born in 1929 in Udaipur in Rajasthan and belonged to the nineteenth generation of the Dagar family. His father Ziauddin Khan Dagar was court musician to the maharana. He learned singing and the rudra veena, an instrument on which singers practised their melodies and which traditionally was not played in public. He chose it as his main instrument nonetheless and gave his first recital at the age of sixteen.

Music and breakthrough

After his father's death he adapted the instrument for solo playing. With the help of an instrument maker he enlarged the gourds and the hollow neck, so that the sound resonated for longer and the vocal techniques of dhrupad could be followed better. It became a larger, deeper instrument, which he played seated in the southern posture. In this way he contributed greatly to the revival of the rudra veena as a solo instrument. His time was hard: after Indian independence in 1947 the family lost the court as its patron. They lived in Mumbai and for twenty-five years barely made ends meet. In 1982 he founded the Dhrupad Gurukul near Panvel, a school where a few pupils live in with their teacher. Recordings include Raga Yaman (1991), Rudra Veena Recital (1974) and Raag Malkauns: Bombay 1968, which he made with his brother.

Influence

His playing was known for the slow development of a raga, usually with only a tanpura, and for the careful microtonal ornaments. He also taught in the West, including in Berkeley, at Wesleyan University and in Seattle. He died in 1990.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Raga Yaman on the rudra veena and notice how slowly the raga unfolds. Hear how the low, resonant strings let each note ring on before the next one arrives.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists