Bomb! * Edition of 300 * Since their founding nearly a decade ago, the Milan based imprint, Black Sweat, has left an indelible mark on the landscape of recorded music, issuing a strikingly diverse array of historical and contemporary efforts, spanning numerous fields and artistic disciplines. More than anything, the drive and success of Black Sweat is rooted in a deep passion and knowledge for music, allowing them to throw up numerous surprises and a considerable amount of gold. Back in 2022, they joined the growing movement of labels exploring the astounding Indian Classical traditions of Hindustani and Dhrupad music, issuing a stunning double LP of Mohi Bahauddin Dagar’s “Ahir Bhairav”. Now continuing the momentum started there, drawing on label founder Davide Domenichini’s long standing passion for the sounds of India, Black Sweat returns with the first ever vinyl release of two astounding ragas - “Raag Malkauns“ and “Ragini Miyan Ki Todi” - recorded live by the legendary brothers Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar and Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar in Bombay in 1968. Issued as a stunning triple LP set, with fantastic liner notes by Bengt Berger and Bahauddin Dagar (the son of Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar), this is hands down one of the most remarkable and exciting releases we’re likely to encounter all year. A duet of veena and vocals, towering with emotion, depth, and virtuosity, it’s an absolute must for any fan of Indian classical music, as well as a perfect starting point for anyone interested in exploring this unparalleled world of sound.

Hindustani music, the northern tradition of Indian classical music which took on Persian music sometime around the 12th Century and become its own distinct idiom, stands among the most remarkable and enduring musical traditions on the planet. A deeply devotional music that is almost entirely improvised, it is primarily oriented around the playing of rāgas, melodic structures with musical motifs - often specifically related to deity within Hinduism, a time of day, and year / season - through which a musician provokes deep states of consciousness and emotion. While Hindustani music has numerous schools of thought and practice relating to how best achieve the objectives of a rāga, among the oldest and most revered is Dhrupad, delivering incredibly beautiful and austere renderings that entirely stand on their own.

The traditions and practices of Indian classical music are most commonly taught and passed on within families. This is particularly present within Dhrupad, which is closely associated with the Dagar family, who are able to trace back twenty generations of practioneers and are almost solely responsible for the resurgence and appreciation for Dhrupad within the 20th Century, thanks to the efforts of seven Dagar brothers and cousins who belonged to the 19th generation: Aminuddin Dagar and Nasir Moinuddin (Senior Dagar Brothers), Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar, Nasir Zaheeruddin, and Nasir Fayyazuddin (Junior Dagar Brothers), H. Sayeeduddin Dagar, Zia Mohiuddin Dagar, and Zia Fariduddin Dagar. It is on the last two of these - ZM Dagar and ZF Dagar, that Black Sweat’s latest release, “Raag Malkauns / Ragini Miyan Ki Todi - Bombay, 1968”, casts its gaze.

Born in 1929 and 1932 respectively, both Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar and Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar were students of their father, Ustad Ziauddin Khan Dagar, a highly regarded practitioner of Dhrupad and a court musician for Maharana Bhupal Singh of Udaipur. Both were taught singing and the veena from a young age, with ZM making the radical decision to make the rudra veena, which had never been used as a solo performance instrument within Dhrupad prior, as his main instrument, and ZF dedicating himself to singing. Both are among the most famous and highly regard Dhrupad players of all time, but their catalog of recordings - having begun relatively late in life due to personal hardship and set backs - is tragically thin, particularly on vinyl, making Black Sweat’s release of two rare performance recordings that much more special.

Particularly viewed in its own context, “Raag Malkauns / Ragini Miyan Ki Todi - Bombay, 1968” is an incredibly important artefact. While recent releases by Ideologic Organ and Black Truffle have highlighted ZM Dagar’s important contribution to the traditions of Hindustani music and Dhrupad - notably his unique use of the rudra veena as a solo concert instrument - this triple LP collection - overflowing with overwhelming sounds - takes great lengths to build greater understanding of the broader tradition within which he worked and help draw much needed attention toward his equally talented brother, ZF Dagar, and their working relationship.

Recorded at Zia Mohiuddin Dagar’s home in Bombay during private concerts during 1968, in Jugalbandi - most understood as a duet between masters - by the legendary rudra veena player alongside his brother Zia Fariduddin Dagar, Black Sweat’s release features two ragas, one evening and other morning. As Bengt Berger describes in the liner notes: “Malkauns is a classical Indian evening raga… This recording was done in Ustad’s house on a late evening and he was so thrilled with the recording that he wanted to do another one on the next morning, this time a morning raga, Miyan Ki Todi. The recording captures the morning mood of this raga in a wonderful way, listening to it in the morning is strongly recommended.” Each is rendered with profound depth by the brothers, the tones of the ZM’s instrument perfectly compliments and meshing with ZF’s voice, favoring the sparse and slow realizations of these ragas that fall within the Dhrupad style. Each note, bubbling from the past across the six sides of the release, lingering solely and drowned in humanity, displaying a range of emotive meaning that defies the capacity of words.

As ZM’s son, the veena player Bahauddin Dagar, states in the liner notes, these renders of these Ragas: “complement each other with open-ended phrases so the dialogue continues seamlessly. The two brothers never lose sight of the purity, or wavers from the framework. In complete freedom they reward us with a purely classical and emotionally fulfilling picture of [these ragas within] the Dhrupad tradition.”

Two beautiful and priceless recordings combined as a single, incredibly produced triple LP from Black Sweat, with fantastic exploratory liner texts by Bengt Berger and Bahauddin Dagar, via these incredible tones - inducing profound, meditative states - we are transported into another world and time, arching back across the millennia into the present day, drawing us into the intimate world of the Dagars that gives the distinct feeling of eavesdropping on what was a private affair between the performers and their recordists. Truly amazing and essential for anyone interested in Indian Classical music, Hindustani music, Dhrupad, and fans of the Dagars, new and old. Once again, Black Sweat has blown out minds.