📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Ustad Mansur
Entertainment
Nal Tarang Revives 108-Year-Old Maher Music Tradition at 52nd Ustad Alaudin Khan Festival
✍️ Amar Ujala · Madhya Pradesh
🗓 14 Nov 2026, 09:01 AM
👁 29
The 52nd Ustad Alaudin Khan Music Festival in Maher, Madhya Pradesh, showcased the rare Nal Tarang, breathing new life into a 108‑year‑old local musical tradition.
The 52nd edition of the Ustad Alaudin Khan Music Festival opened in Maher, Madhya Pradesh, with a series of melodic performances that highlighted the town’s rich cultural legacy. Organisers gathered musicians, scholars and local enthusiasts to celebrate the enduring heritage of the Maher music ensemble, which dates back more than a century.
A standout of the program was the Nal Tarang, a unique wind instrument seldom heard outside the region. Its resonant, cascading tones formed the centerpiece of the concert, illustrating how the instrument’s distinctive sound can bridge past and present. Musicians demonstrated traditional playing techniques while also experimenting with contemporary arrangements, underscoring the instrument’s adaptability.
The audience responded with palpable enthusiasm, applauding the revival of a tradition that has survived for 108 years. Cultural commentators noted that the festival’s emphasis on the Nal Tarang not only preserves an endangered art form but also reinforces Maher’s identity as a cradle of classical Indian music.
Festival officials said the success of this year’s event will encourage further initiatives to document and promote the town’s musical archives, ensuring that future generations can experience the same heritage that has defined Maher for more than a century.
A standout of the program was the Nal Tarang, a unique wind instrument seldom heard outside the region. Its resonant, cascading tones formed the centerpiece of the concert, illustrating how the instrument’s distinctive sound can bridge past and present. Musicians demonstrated traditional playing techniques while also experimenting with contemporary arrangements, underscoring the instrument’s adaptability.
The audience responded with palpable enthusiasm, applauding the revival of a tradition that has survived for 108 years. Cultural commentators noted that the festival’s emphasis on the Nal Tarang not only preserves an endangered art form but also reinforces Maher’s identity as a cradle of classical Indian music.
Festival officials said the success of this year’s event will encourage further initiatives to document and promote the town’s musical archives, ensuring that future generations can experience the same heritage that has defined Maher for more than a century.