Abdul Wahid Khan

Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan (1871–1949) was an Indian subcontinental singer from the Kirana gharana. He died in 1949 in Saharanpur, near Delhi, India.

Early life and background Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan was born in Kirana, Uttar Pradesh in 1871. The town of Kirana was home to many families of musicians from the Mughal court, who migrated from Delhi after the Mughal Empire fell in 1857. Kirana gharana's three disciplines are rudraveena, sarangi and vocals - Kirana Style of Singing is with sweetness of tone, delightful and ornate. Ustad Abdul Karim Khan had married Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan's sister, Ghafooran Bibi. The relationship between Abdul Wahid Khan and Abdul Karim Khan later soured when Abdul Karim neglected Ghafooran Bibi and married his student, Tarabai Mane. Abdul Wahid Khan's hearing was deficient and he was sometimes referred to as Behre Wahid Khan (Deaf Wahid Khan). Wahid Khan's son Ustad Hafizullah Khan was born in 1946. Hafizullah's uncles trained him in music, and he became a Sarangi player.

"Although a youthful prodigy of the Kolhapur court, remaining unchallenged after his public debut there at age 18, Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan had no inclination to spend time singing in the courts. Instead he lived a devout, reclusive life, singing in the presence of holy men and at the tombs of Sufi saints and only occasionally sang in public."

Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan and Ustad Abdul Karim Khan's evolution of the vilambit khyal inspired Amir Khan to develop his trademark ati vilambit singing.

Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan evolved the classical Hindustani music by extending recitals of a raga from approximately 20 minutes to up to an hour. Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan was one of the greatest icons of the Kirana gharana.