A flute fusion

Islam's love of the flute goes back to his early days when he was the captain of a ship. In moments of solitude, he often played a flute to alleviate the loneliness out at sea. The ocean's waves gave his flute a rhythm and the movement of the ship gave it a tempo. ' The flute recital of Panna Lal Ghosh always inspired me at that time,' recalls the artiste. And thus stands today's Ustad Azizul Islam.

With the fusion of Jhumra and Tritaal, he started with raga Mian Ki Malhar which is dedicated to the monsoon. What better way to usher in the rains? Then he played his own composition in raga Imon in Setarkhani taal and raga Jhinjhoti with a blending of Rupak and Kaharba taal. The last attraction was his own composition in raga Kirwani, which he dedicated to violin maestro Pundit VG Jog, sitar player Ustad Belayet Khan and to late singer Niloufer Yasmeen. The audience thoroughly enjoyed Islam's performance.

Prior to the recital, in a small ceremony, chief guest Dr Osman Farruk, Minister for Education, launched Islam's CD. On that CD, the artiste presented raga Sree and Joy-Joyonti and a Bhatiyali dhun. Syed Margub Morshed, Chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission; Professor Mahmudul Haq, Director General of the National Museum and AKM Arifur Rahman, chairman of the Laser Vision, were also present on the occasion.