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An Evening of Melody with
legendary Sarod Maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan
Kavita Chhibber
“The sensitive fingers caress the silver strings; a shower of
magical notes intoxicates the enraptured audience; music comes
alive when strummed by Ustad Amjad Ali Khan.”
One of the most admired musical geniuses to emerge out of India,
Ustad Amjad Ali Khan has been honored across the world with the
highest awards, including- UNESCO Award, Padma Vibhushan
(Highest Indian civilian award), Unicef's National
Ambassadorship, The Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum,
the Gandhi UNESCO Medal in Paris for his composition Bapukauns,
the “Commander of the Order of Arts and letters” by the French
Government and the Fukuoka Cultural grand prize in Japan to name
a few.
In 1999, when the maestro inaugurated the World Festival of
Sacred Music with the Dalai Lama, His Holiness said, "When Amjad
Ali Khan performs he carries with him a deep human spirit, a
warm feeling and a sense of caring". He is also greatly admired
by Prince Charles and has performed many times before him.
It was Amjad Ali Khan’s great great great grandfather Mohammad
Hashmi Khan Bangash, a musician and horse trader, who came to
India with the Afghan rabab, a wooden Central Asian lute,
covered with skin. His grandfather Nanhe Khan and father Hafiz
Ali Khan, continued the family legacy and kept improving and
altering the rabab, until it became the modern Sarod.
The modern Sarod is smaller than the Sitar. It’s the skin, and
the fact that it’s a fretless instrument where the strings are
pulled at by nails, that gives a strong vocal sound to the tonal
quality of the instrument. Fine tuned to bring the influences of
Indian, Afghan and Persian culture and music together into a
rich, deeply resonant experience, today Ustad Amjad Ali Khan’s
music on this instrument has broken all barriers, enthralling
audiences world wide.
He was just 6 years old, when Amjad Ali Khan gave his first
recital. Today he has six generations of the Senia Bangash
legacy, revealed through his music. He has marked over fifty
years of playing and to this day Ustad Amjad Ali Khan’s touch on
the Sarod creates notes that flow with crystal clarity, elegance
and astounding beauty. The finesse with which he evokes all that
is pure and divine in music, the way he plays the pure notes
interspersing them with compositions and then flowing back to
the notes is just spell binding. He has created many new Ragas,
new innovations, but always remaining within the rich and
seamless tradition of Indian classical music.
The US has welcomed the maestro, his knowledge and musical
genius with open arms. He has received honorary citizenship to
the States of Texas (1997), Massachusetts (1984), Tennessee
(1997), the city of Atlanta, Georgia (2002), Albuquerque, NM
(2007) and the Key of the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma (2007). April
20th, 1984 was cleared as Amjad Ali Khan Day in Boston,
Massachusetts.
Every concert, every class presented by him to acquaint America
of his rich heritage, has only one purpose, ‘to convey the
message that in our music you can see and feel the freedom
within the discipline.
What surprises the audience abroad, about Indian classical
music, says the maestro, is that there is no notation; and that
during a solo performance the conductor, performer and composer
is one person.
“The improvisation is totally different from the way it is done
in say jazz for instance. I live in the world of sound. A
heartbeat is an indication of rhythm and what you speak and it
may be conversation, recitation, chanting or singing, is all
part of music.”
His sons Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan represent the seventh
generation of master musicians. Not only have they emerged as
worthy successors of their father’s rich legacy, they have taken
Sarod to new dimensions, by presenting the instrument as a rich
treasure house in the genre of lounge music. Yet the
experimentation remains within the tradition of classical music.
No less than India’s President and legendary superstar Amitabh
Bachchan, are among their thousands of ardent admirers. The
proud father says, “Today people hear us, and their love
inspires us to greater heights. I love to perform with my sons.
When the three of us play together its like a living tradition
alive on stage and a unique experience for people. For me it’s a
matter of pride to play with the youngsters.”
A deeply spiritual musician Ustad Amjad Ali Khan’s music brings
a message of peace in a world filled with strive and self
absorption.
“Music has no boundaries and no religion. It is the binding
force in the world. As a musician I feel connected to every soul
and I hope that we can use the healing power of music to bring
harmony in the world. The same 12 notes bind all music. No one
has come up with the 13th note. As a humble citizen of the world
I want to appeal to everyone to remember that humanity is the
only true religion. God does not reside in the concrete
buildings around us but within us..atma hi parmatama hai... so
please let that godliness within you emerge and create a
peaceful and harmonious world for future generations.”
Amjad Ali Khan has performed regularly at the Carnegie Hall,
Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Kennedy Center, Santury
Hall (First Indian performer), House of Commons, Theater Dela
Ville, Muee Guimet, Esplande in Singapore, Palais beaux-arts,
Mozart Hall in Frankfurt, Chicago Symphony Center, St. James
Palace and the Opera House in Australia.
On 15 September 2007, the legendary musician, accompanied by his
sons Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan will recreate that melodic magic
at the fabulous Fox Theater.
The Georgia Indo-American Chamber of Commerce is proud to host
an event that will bring the city’s top leadership and crème de
la crème together for an evening where music and a message of
peace and goodwill, will enhance the meeting of diverse minds.
The Coca-Cola Company, which has made global excellence,
optimism, positivism and corporate social responsibility, its
key theme, also considers it a matter of great pride to present
outstanding artists of the highest caliber, and promote art and
culture in the society. It is only natural that Coca-Cola
continues that tradition by being the proud Sponsor of this
event.
For more information Please Contact: Stan Sthanunathan
Vice President -
Knowledge & Insights
The Coca-Cola Company
404-676-2615
ssthanunathan@na.ko.com
Narsi Narasimhan
President-Elect, GIACC
404-488-7310
narsi@paalam.com
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