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'Ustad Zakir Hussain' is an Indian tabla player. He is considered to be one of the frontrunners of traditional Indian Classical Music and has won innumerable awards and accolades from all over the world. He is one of the greatest tabla players ever and is renowned as the face of Indian Classical Music.
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About Zakir Hussain & Masters Of Indian Percussion
'Zakir Hussain' was born on March 9, 1951 in Bombay, India to the renowned tabla player 'Ustad Alla Rakha'. 'Ustad Alla Rakha' is him self considered a master of the tabla and one of the greatest tabla players of the last century. Zakir attended the 'St. Michael's High School' in Mahim, Bombay and finished his graduation from St Xavier’s, Mumbai. 'Zakir Hussain' was born with his father's musical genes and had started giving performances even before he was ten years old. By the time he was twelve years old, Zakir was already touring on a frequent basis. He made his first tour to the United States in the year 1970, when he was just eighteen years old.
Over the years, Zakir has composed and recorded many famous albums and soundtracks, which has given him widespread recognition as a composer and a musician. He has been an important part of much historic collaboration, such as 'Shakti', which he founded with John McLaughlin, the 'Diga Rhythm Band', where he performed with 'Lakshminarayanan Shankar', 'Making Music' and the 'Planet Drum'. Zakir has recorded and performed with artists from diverse backgrounds, such as 'George Harrison', 'Joe Henderson', 'Van Morrison', 'Jack Bruce', 'Tito Puente', 'Pharoah Sanders', 'Billy Cobham', the 'Hong Kong Symphony' and the 'New Orleans Symphony'.
'Ustad Zakir Hussain' came out with his first solo release titled 'Making Music', in the year 1987. The album is still regarded as one of the best East-West fusion albums ever made. Zakir was awarded the title of Padma Shri, one of the greatest civilian awards given by the Indian government, in the year 1988. His music has said to have broken many cultural barriers between the East and the West and this was duly recognized when in the year 1990 he was awarded the 'Indo-American Award' in recognition to the cultural contribution to relations between the United States and India, that his music had made. In the year 1991, Zakir got together with the musician 'Mickey Hart', former member of the popular American band 'Grateful Dead', to release the album 'Planet Drum'. The album got the Grammy for the 'Best World Music Album’ in the year 1992, as well as the 'Downbeat Critics Poll' for 'Best World Beat Album'.
'Ustad Zakir Hussain' is also one of the founding members of the Supergroup 'Tabla Beat Science'. Over the years he has featured on the soundtracks of a number of films, such as 'Heat and Dust', 'In Custody', 'The Mystic Masseur', 'Apocalypse Now' and 'Little Buddha'. In the year 1999, Zakir also received the 'National Heritage Fellowship', one of the most prestigious honors bestowed by the United States government for excellence in traditional arts. Presently, he also teaches Tabla to advanced students in both Mumbai and San Francisco. 'Ustad Zakir Hussain' is not only regarded as one of the greatest tabla players of all times but is also considered one of the main architects of the contemporary world music movement. His contribution to the world of music is unmatchable and to get an opportunity to witness his performance is nothing short of sheer fortune.
