Dr. Jagir Singh (Chandigarh)

Dr. Jagir Singh Ji belongs to a family that has been blessed with the gift of Kirtan. His father, Bhai Utam Singh Pattang was a renowned Raagi of his time and both of Dr. Jagir Singh Ji’s brothers, Dr. Bachitar Singh Ji and Dr. Gurnam Singh Ji have carved a name for themselves in the field of Gurmat Sangeet. Dr. Jagir Singh Ji was born on 4th of October 1949 to Mata Charan Kaur Ji. As a young boy, he was initiated into music by his father and as the years passed with rigorous training, he began accompanying his father in performing Kirtan. Bhai Utam Singh Ji also sent him to Bhai Bakshish Singh Ji for further training and during this time, he accompanied Bhai Bakshish Singh Ji on the side harmonium for around three years.

Dr. Jagir Singh Ji served with Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee for many years and he was assigned Kirtan duties in various Gurdwaras including Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib, Takhat Shri Keshgarh Sahib and Gurdwara Dukh Niwaran Sahib in Patiala. All this while, Dr. Jagir Singh Ji continued having the thirst to learn more. He became a student of renowned Shastri Sangeet vocalist, Pandit Yashpal to learn the intricacies of classical music. At the same time, Dr. Jagir Singh Ji pursued a formal education and went on to achieve Master in Arts degrees in Punjabi language and music. Subsequently, he completed his PhD in music as well. Following his academic achievements, Dr. Jagir Singh Ji started lecturing in Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, Chandigarh. He has also served as Deputy Director of Punjab School Education Board. After his retirement from the Education Board, he was appointed as Chairperson of Department of Gurmat Sangeet, Punjabi University, Patiala, from which post he retired on the 31st of December, 2009. The Department is now being looked after by his youngest brother, Dr. Gurnam Singh, who is bringing laurels through his achievements.

Even though Dr. Jagir Singh Ji has been heavily inclined toward academics, he has never stopped performing Kirtan and continues to delight ‘Sangat’ worldwide. He has traveled abroad to many countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Kuwait, England, Holland and the United Stated of America. One of his major contributions to Gurmat Sangeet is the very valuable magazine ‘Amrit Kirtan’ that he has been publishing regularly since 1989. This magazine contains priceless information and can be accessed at his website, ‘Amrit Kirtan’. Besides the magazine, Dr. Jagir Singh Ji has also published three books related to Gurmat Sangeet. His other achievements include numerous awards as listed below:

- Shiromani Raagi Award (1989) by Bhasha Vibhag Punjab
- Prof. Tara Singh Award (1992) by Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle
- Gurmat Sangeet Award (2002) by Adutti Gurmat Sangeet Samelan, Jawaddi Kalan
- National Award (2003) by Sangeet Natak Academy, Delhi
- Bhai Sudh Singh Pardhan Singh Award (2003) by Punjabi Sahit Kala Sangam, Delhi

The above information was obtained from the book, ‘Gurmat Sangeet De Anmol Rattan’ written by the late Bhai Nirmal Singh Khalsa. If anyone has more recordings of Dr. Jagir Singh Ji to share, please contact us.

The albums below are from cassettes my family purchased in India during some of our travels in the 1990s. Please ‘right click’ and ‘save link as’ to download audio files. Enjoy!

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