Friday, May 8, 2009

Influence

Lalon Shah had a perceptible influence on the poet Rabindranath Tagore, who introduced the Baul tradition of Bengal to the world. His own music had been influenced by the diversity of Baul tradition.
In 1963, a mausoleum and a research centre were built at the site of his shrine, the place of knowledge-practices. Thousands of people come to the shrine known in Bengali as akhra twice a year, Dol-Purnima, in the month of Falgun (February to March) and in October, on the occasion of the anniversary of his death. During these three-day song melas, people, particularly fakirs and bauls pay tributes to this great mind the subcontinent has produced.
American poet Allen Ginsberg was inspired by Lalon Shah in writing his poem After Lalon, included in the poetry collection "Cosmopolitan Greetings." Ginsberg adopts a poetic style similar to Lalon's own style, frequently repeating his own name within the poem.
Among the modern singers, Farida Parvin is definitely the most notable one as she has recorded so far 300 songs composed by Lalon Shah.
Other notable exponents of Baul music is Shehnaz Baily, whose recorded works are rare but available in Bangladesh.