Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan was one of the most eminent vocalists of the twentieth century. Acclaimed for his rendition of khayal he was one of the top rejuvenators of the Kirana Gharana. Born in 1878 in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, Khan began his musical training under an able master Haider Baksh of Chaprauli. Starting from sarangi and rudra veena, gradually his education expanded in the territory of vocal music. The initial training had a huge impact on his singing style which though purely classical in nature was highly individualistic. His performances were based on raga elaboration which helped him perfect the alap. During 1923-24, Khan’s performances at Abdul Karim Khan’s Arya Sangeet Vidyalaya, Mumbai were widely celebrated. He was accompanied by his pupils Munnibai and Putlibai, and by Shankar Rao on tabla. Khan’s renditions of ragas such as Darbari Kanada, Malkauns, Malhar, Lalit,Pooriya, Miyan ki Malhar , Bhairavi and Marwa were talked about as being exemplary. Khan was also with All India Radio, Lahore, for some time prior to Indian Independence. Renowned as a virtuoso vocalist, Khan was also equally revered as a teacher. He had the perfect blend of tradition and modernity to root his pupils to their heritage yet not curtail their innovations. He left behind an illustrious list of pupils including Hirabai Barodekar, Sureshbabu Mane, Saraswati Rane, Jeewanlal Mattu,Pran Nath, Rashid Ahmed Khan , Begum Akhtar , music director Feroze Nizami and playback singer Mohd. Rafi. Upon losing his hearing in his later years, he became known as Bahre Wahid Khan.
The greatest legacy that Abdul Wahid Khan left behind was his signature stylistic interpretation of the khayal style of singing. He expanded the raga in a very slow tempo ( ati vilambit) , where it unfurled with a majestic dignity as one swar dissolved into another (meend). He evolved the Indian Classical Music by extending the raga recitals from twenty minutes to up to an hour. This style influenced Ustad Amir Khan of the Indore Gharana who was not a formal pupil of Khan. Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan passed away in 1949.