Sitar Samrat Nikhil Banerjee: Dhun: Dadra Dhun: November 6 1974

One listening session to this magnificent artistry and its effect on your inner state, will convince you that Nikhil da is unparalleled in the Annals of the Sitar sound sharing with the world. His is the product of the ultimate sincere sadhana, and such an offering is always divine. The dhun is a common instrumental form. It is an instrumental version of a song. Quite often it is a folk song, but on occasion it may be film song. One tends to find only the lighter taals used to accompany the dhun. This is most commonly kaherava of 8 beats or dadra of 6 beats. However, on occasion one may find dipchandi, or similar semiclassical rhythms. The dhun tends to be played in the lighter rags; Mand, Khammaj, and Pahadi are very common. Heavy rags such as Darbari Kanda are almost never heard. Furthermore the treatment of the ragas is given more latitude. It is very common to play everything mishra, or mixed. The term dhun must not be confused with the devotional chant, which is also called dhun. The table player is not known.