Ustad Ali Akbar Khan: Master of the strings

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s destiny in music was etched into his life’s journey even before he could choose it. His father, Baba Allauddin Khan, famous for his musicianship as well as his disciplinarian ways had envisaged his son as a messenger of music. From the famed alleys of Maihar, to the busy bylanes of Kolkata and eventually to the obscure yet aspirational West, the maestro devoted a lifetime to sharing this message with the world. Celebrating the birth centenary of the sarod maestro is an ode to a legacy of dynamic artistry.

Alam Khan, the maestro’s son and disciple, reflects on his father’s musical genius, “In a just a few notes, he could capture and share a whole range of human emotions and experience.” He points out that his father remained true to the rich musical tradition even while bringing his individuality to the sarod-playing technique. “His expert musical phrasing opened up a rich language of expression that revolutionised sarod-playing in the last century.”

A passionate teacher

In 1967, when Indian classical music was just gaining attention in the West, he established the Ali Akbar College of Music in California. His jugalbandis with Pt. Ravi Shankar and collaborative performances at global festivals with international musicians were key in introducing sarod to a new audience.

Initially invited as a guest teacher at a music society in the area, Ali Akbar Khan gradually developed deep interest in teaching as more students began approaching him. “One of the reasons why musicians and enthusiasts gravitated towards him was because they experienced the authenticity, connect and power of his music.” Over the decades, the music college emerged as one of the major centres of Indian classical music in the U.S. and has branches in other countries such as Switzerland. It was a passion project for the maestro and his wife, Mary, who continued to oversee its functioning and expansion with Alam, after the Ustad’s death in 2009.

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan teaching his disciples
| Photo Credit: Ali Akbar Khan Foundation

After spending years finding his feet in Kolkata, where funding and support often became bottlenecks, the sarod legend finally found a place for his music school. “He would use several analogies and metaphors while teaching. He would often explain profound aspects of music in the most simple way,” recalls Alam.

Though Ustad Ali Akbar Khan was taught by his father, who was an unsparing taskmaster, he brought a lot of warmth and gentleness to his teaching style. “There are several anecdotes about how my grandfather (Baba Allaudin Khan) kept a strict watch on his disciples, specially his children, who went on to become great musicians (Ali Akbar Khan and Annapurna Devi). My father learnt under intense pressure, but that also moulded him into a diamond.”

The kitchen in the big house in Maihar was probably one of the few places he could escape to where his father couldn’t find him. It became his refuge; it also developed in him a love for cooking. “He was a fantastic cook and enjoyed feeding people. His  dal remains legendary among his students, friends and family.”

Alam says one of the biggest lessons he learnt from his father was patience. “As a guru, he was affectionate and patient, but would point out sharply when we weren’t making enough progress. He would express his unhappiness without making us feel hopeless. He told us to draw as much as we could from the ocean of knowledge.”

Rooted in spontaneity

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s approach to performing was rooted in spontaneity. He rarely decided what he would be playing at a concert and chose to go with the flow. “For him, music was like prayer,” says Alam. “He would ask — do you rehearse your prayer? No, then how can you fix your music?” A lot of his learning happened while performing and accompanying his father in his early days. He followed the same with his students. “He would say that lions don’t teach their cubs in the den, they teach them in the jungle outside, so we also learnt in concerts.”

Alam Khan
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

For the Ustad, his music and identity were inseparable. He wished to go to India and play at a concert despite his failing health. “It was the Dover Lane Music Conference, in Kolkata. Though he had been advised against travelling, he wanted to perform and my mother made all the arrangements. Since we hadn’t heard him play for a long time, we were worried how the concert would turn out. When he went up on stage, he forgot everything else. For the next three hours, people just listened, spellbound. The music was majestic. It was his last concert in India. His grand musical farewell.”

The maestro’s loyal companion, till the end, was his sarod. He played with the same sarod throughout his life. It was made from the wood of a tree at Baba Allauddin Khan’s ancestral village in Bangladesh, by his brother. “His sarod was about ten years older than him. His father trained him in various instruments, finally choosing the sarod for him,” says Alam. As a result, he could emulate the effect and style of various instruments on the sarod, lending it a depth and range that was rare. “When he held his sarod, he seem to hold the cosmos in his hands,” says Alam.

T he Ali Akbar College of Music is hosting an array of tribute performances this year, along with the publication of a book featuring Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s memorable quotes.

The author is a Delhi-based arts researcher and writer.

The Ali Akbar College of Music is hosting an array of tribute performances this year, along with the publication of a book featuring Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s memorable quotes.