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Shamsul Huda is a dedicated singer, music director, actor and music collector. Huda did his Masters in Classical Music from Lucknow, India. He returned to Bangladesh in 1988 and his passion for music took him to the remote corners of the greater Mymensingh region in search of folk songs. There he collected the lyrics and recorded the songs performed by the local folk artistes.
“My experience has been absolutely fascinating. It is heartening to learn what music means to the common folks in our country. Even beggars who don’t know the basics of music can sing a lot of unfamiliar folk songs that have beautiful lyrics and music. I’ve recorded some of them,” says the artiste.
Huda has an impressive collection of music including rare folk songs, Nazrul Sangeet, songs of Gyanendra Prasad Goswami, Ukil Munshi, Abdur Rashid, Jalal Khan and more.
“I want to have a collection of songs that are rare — this is my dream project. My collection includes original renditions of 700 Nazrul songs, which I am now converting into CD format. Among these is an unpublished song that Kazi Nazrul Islam instantly wrote and composed while teaching Bimal Bhushan. The lyrics of the song goes Amar shudhu chokher dekha shoi, ami kangaal bole kangaalito noi .”
Recordings of radio programmes – Basanti Bidya Bidhi, Devastuti, Harapriya and Kalaha Kalahantorita — directed by Kazi Nazrul Islam and aired on Akash Bani, Kolkata are also included in Huda’s collection.
This music enthusiast was enlisted in BTV in 1998 as a Nazrul, folk and classical singer; actor and music director. With an experience in theatre (with the Mask Theatre troupe, Kolkata) spanning five years, he has acted in several TV plays aired on different channels in Bangladesh including the drama serial Rang, Rangeela Manushera, Sporsher Bairey and more.
Huda also wrote and composed the theme song of the film Rakkhoshi , sung by S.I. Tutul.
According to the artiste, singing is what he is most comfortable with. Says Huda, “Singing is my first preference. I am quite comfortable with all kinds of songs.” Recently, he has finished recording his first solo folk album Dotana Pireet . He is optimistic about the album.
According to Shamsul Huda, his most remarkable work is the programme titled Television Sangeet Sammilan , aired on BTV from 1996 to 1999. Huda worked as the scriptwriter and researcher for the programme.
“We tried to give breaks to numerous young and talented folk singers from all over the country. Quite a few promising singers like Anima Mukti, Shahnaz Beli emerged from that programme,” Huda says.
“Living in an age of restlessness, people don’t seem to hold on to a particular good song for a while anymore. We should try and understand what makes songs tick and create songs that will be remembered for decades. It’s high time we study and promote our own culture instead of blindly following the ways of others.”
Source: The Daily Star.
Tags: Classical Music, Kazi Nazrul Islam, Tutul
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