Raag Shree | Ustad Rashid Khan

Raag Shree | Ustad Rashid Khan
Shree is a very old North Indian raga of the Purvi thaat, and has traditionally been associated with Shiva. It also appears in the Sikh tradition from northern India, and is a part of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy text of the Sikhs.[1] The Guru Granth Sahib composition comprises 31 ragas where Shree is the first raga to appear. The raga appears first on 14th page of the composition.
The basis of this Raag is steeped in the traditions of mainstream Indian Classical music. Siri Raag is serious and thought-provoking in its nature and creates an atmosphere where the listener is led to heed the advice given therein. The listener (the mind) is made aware of the truth of the message and with this ‘education’ is given the strength to face the future with both humility and the ‘gained’ knowledge.
Guru Nanak, Guru Amar Das, Guru Ram Das, and Guru Arjan have composed sacred hymns (Shabads) to be accompanied with this raga. It accompanies about 142 Shabads.
According to Indian classical vocalist Pandit Jasraj, Shree is "an evening raga, sung during the sunset. It is full of grace and majesty, and the main mood it creates is one of devotion and dedication.
Ustad Rashid Khan (born 1 July 1968) is an Indian classical musician in the Hindustani music tradition. He belongs to the Rampur-Sahaswan gharana, and is the great-grandson of gharana founder Inayat Hussain Khan. He is married to Soma Khan.
In a story told in several versions, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi once remarked that Rashid Khan was the "assurance for the future of Indian vocal music". He was awarded the Padma Shri, as well as the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2006. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian award, in 2022 by the Indian Government in the field of Art.
Born in Sahaswan, Badayun, Uttar Pradesh. He received his initial training from his maternal grand-uncle, Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan (1909-1993). He is also the nephew of Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan.
As a child he had little interest in music. His uncle Ghulam Mustafa Khan was among the first to note his musical talents, and for some time trained him in Mumbai. However, he received his main training from Nissar Hussain Khan, initially at his house in Badayun. A strict disciplinarian, Nissar Hussain Khan would insist on voice training (Swar Sadhana) from four in the morning, and make Rashid practice one note of the scale for hours on end. A whole day would be spent on practising just a single note. Although Rashid detested these lessons as a child, but the disciplined training shows in his easy mastery of taan and layakaari today. It was not until he was 18 that Rashid began to truly enjoy his musical training.
Rashid Khan gave his first concert at age eleven, and the following year, 1978, he performed at an ITC concert in Delhi. In April 1980, when Nissar Hussain Khan moved to the ITC Sangeet Research Academy (SRA), Calcutta, Rashid Khan also joined the academy at the age of 14. By 1994, he was acknowledged as a musician (a formal process) at the academy.