During the Medieval period, Indian Music went through a meta¬morphosis, blending in itself beautifully the Arab, Persian, and Central Asian influences, and which gave birth to new forms and styles which continue to survive even today. Dr. Najma Perveen Ahmad has analysed the development of Hindustani Music during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries ad and has studied such texts as Raag Darpan, Tohfat-ul-Hind, Usulun-Naghmat-e-Aasifi and Naadirat-e-Shahi. What she provides in the pages of the book is an authentic survey of music during the seven-teenth and eighteenth centuries, and its impact on contemporary Hindustani Music. Development of forms and styles like Dhruvapada, Khayal, and many Ragas have been gone into in their minutest details. Profiles of musicians during that time and their contemporary musical traditions add great value to this well researched study. About the Author Najma Perveen Ahmad, former Dean, Faculty of Music and Fine Arts, University of Delhi, and a UGC Emeritus Fellow has been deeply involved in teaching and research, and has guided a large number of PhD scholars. She belongs to the Delhi Gharana, and has obtained vocal music training from the renowned vocalist Ustad Naseer Ahmad Khan. Her specialization and researches are on the rare Persian and Urdu manuscripts based on musicology in Hindustani music during the medieval period. She has published several research papers and books. Three of her books, Hindustani Music during Seven¬teenth and Eighteenth Centuries; Research Methods in Indian Music; and Tashrih-ul-Moosiqui: Persian Translation of Tansen’s Original Work ‘Budh Prakash’, have been widely acclaimed.
