What is a chalan ? Is it only played in an accompaniment scenario? Does it vary from one gharana to another? I will appreciate examples from the different gharanas if possible to help me understand this concept. thanks.
A chalan is a composition in 2 parts: the first is like a kaida, the second like a mukra
for instance, the only one i know given to me by Shankar Gosh:
first part:
Da ti da- da ti ge na tun na ke na
da ti da- kre det- da ge na tit-
da ti ge na tun na ke ne
second part:
ti- ketetake ti- ketetake taketere ketetake taketere ketetake terekete
tiketake terekete da ti da ge na da ti da ge na
you can make variations on the 2nd part i think
anyone knowing more?
John (Jan 11, 2002 05:42 a.m.):
What is a chalan ? Is it only played in an accompaniment scenario? Does it vary from one gharana to another? I will appreciate examples from the different gharanas if possible to help me understand this concept. thanks.
[quote]krasp (Jan 11, 2002 06:31 a.m.):
a chalan is a composition in 2 parts: the first is like a kaida, the second like a mukra
for instance, the only one i know given to me by Shankar Gosh:
first part:
Da ti da- da ti ge na tun na ke na
da ti da- kre det- da ge na tit-
da ti ge na tun na ke ne
second part:
ti- ketetake ti- ketetake taketere ketetake taketere ketetake terekete
tiketake terekete da ti da ge na da ti da ge na
you can make variations on the 2nd part i think
anyone knowing more?
[end quote]
Hello,
The above composition I am pretty certain (but not 100% certain) was by Ustad Ahmed Jan 'Thirakwa' Khan. I think it is more commonly refered to as a 'gat' than as a 'chalan'; at any rate one of my gurus (who was a student of a student of Thirakwa-ji) taught it to me as a 'gat'. However, my understanding is that Thirakwa-ji didn't care all that much about definitions, and maybe it's not impossible that he referred to the same composition differently at different times.
I was taught a few Farukhabad chalans that basically take peshkar bols and mix strings of fast closed bols in with it. It is played immediately after peshkar (no theka). So for a while, I thought this was the main use of chalan. However, even within the Farukhabad gharana, this can't be the case because on the Keramatullah Khan lesson book/tape, he presents a chalan that has nothing to do with peshkar, nor is it divided into kayada-like/mukhra-like halves as in the definition above (though I can't remember whether he specifically refers to it as a *Farukhabad* chalan or not). The same book defines chalan as being similar to kayada, except that is has a somewhat different 'flow' to it and the rules for expansion are not as strict. Keramatullah-ji does not present any variations of that chalan in the lesson book, but he does play variations on it in the Robert Gottlieb book/tape set studying the six gharanas.
At any rate, the actual word 'chalan' is sufficiently vague that it's not hard to see how different definitions could arise.
Hello!
Chalan was explained as basis for improvisation in Taranath Rao's book. You're using it as a theme and filling it and expanding it with for example fast tirakita phrases. It's pretty loose form. In Farukhabad chalan is played right after the peshkar. It's also called Farukhabad peshkar (Dutta's Poetic Drumming). Ustad of Ustad's Thirakwa uses chalan or Farukhabad peshkar right after the peshkar.
