Ustad Alla Rakha tribute concert to feature drum beats from across India

Fazal Qureshi's annual concert in memory of his father Ustad Alla Rakha will bring percussion from all over India, on one stage

Ustad Alla Rakha's sons have always celebrated his rich, musical legacy. In the sixth edition of the annual concert organised by Fazal Qureshi, the theme is Drums of India.

Abbaji (right) with his sons Zakir Hussain (extreme left) and Fazal Qureshi (centre)

"Every year, I try to conceptualise the concert in a way that is different from what has been done before. My father's prowess as a Classical musician is well-known.

That's just a part of what he did. He was one of the first Indian Classical musicians to have played with exponents of Western Classical music like Zubin Mehta, and to have cut a Jazz album with American Jazz drummer, Buddy Rich. I want to take that legacy forward and remind people of it," shares Qureshi.

Dhruv Ghanekar

"Rhythm was most important to him. Two years ago, we did a concert that fused Jazz, Indian Classical and Western Classical. This year, we are bringing together percussion sounds from all over India.

The Khartal from Rajasthan and the drums from the North East, have nothing in common except the rhythm. Abbaji always said that rhythm is like a fabric that knits all the artistes together.

Ravi Chary

This year's concert represents India — its diversity in form and yet, the symmetry in rhythm. Indian Classical is highly improvised and so is Jazz, so I wanted Louiz Banks to do a solo piece at the end as an ode to the similarity between the two genres," he adds.

The two-hour long free concert will be hosted by Denzil Smith and will feature artistes like Ravi Chary (sitar), Bondo Fernandes (percussion — Goa), Sridar Parthasarathy (Mridangam), Dhruv Ghanekar (guitar), Sheldon D'Silva (Bass), Tubby (keyboards), Vijay Chauhan (Dholak), Navin Sharma (Dholki), Khete Khan (Khartal — Jaisalmer), Vinod Ravindranathan (Chenda — Bengaluru), Meitei Pung Cholam Troupe (Manipur) and Louiz Banks (keyboards) along with Qureshi on the tabla.

Louiz Banks

"The Manipuri dancers present a mix of martial art, dance, playing the dhol and the pung 9loacal instrument). The audience will witness completely different sounds on one platform," says Qureshi. The finale piece, which is the highlight of the evening, will feature all 14 artistes on stage together.

Fazal Qureshi

"It is like handing over of tradition from generation to generation. This concert gives a platform to young talent to showcase their skills and in a way keeps the tradition alive. The younger lot ensures that Abbaji's philosophy is passed on through the coming generations. We want the audience to remember Abbaji and celebrate with us," Qureshi sums up.

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