Ali Akbar Khan Biography 
Ali Akbar Khan often referred to as Khansahib or by the title Ustad, was a Hindustani classical musician and renowned sarod player of the Maihar gharana. He is the son of great multi-instrumentalist, composer, teacher and one among the first recipients of Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship in the year 1954 - Allauddin Khan. Khan was instrumental in popularizing Indian classical music in the West, in association with Sitar maestro Ravi Shankar and as a guru of sarod. He established a music school in Kolkata in 1956. He also founded the Ali Akbar College of Music in 1967, in San Rafael, California and has a branch in Basel, Switzerland. Apart from several ragas, he has also composed a few film songs. He was an Adjunct Professor of Music at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Khan has been nominated for five Grammy Awards and is the recipient of Padma Vibhushan in 1989.
Ali Akbar Khan was born in the village of Shibpur, Comilla of East Bengal (now a part of Bangladesh). Soon after his birth, Khan's family returned to Maihar of present Madhya Pradesh where his father renowned musician, Allauddin Khan served as the primary court musician for the Maharaja of the princely state. At a younger age, his father gave him training in vocal music as well as several instruments. His father was very strict and used to train him for about 18 hours a day. Gradually he got attracted towards sarod. Khan also learned to play the tabla and the pakhavaj from his uncle, Aftabuddin Khan.
Khan gave his debut performance at a music conference in Allahabad in 1936, at the age of 13. In 1939, he accomplished Pandit Ravi Shankar in his debut performance. In 1938 Khan gave his first recital on All India Radio, Mumbai. In 1944, Ravi Shankar and Ali together started their professional association. Ravi Shankar was married to Annapurna Devi, renowned vocalist and sister of Ali. But the couple divorced later. Khan has participated in a number of classic jugalbandi pairings with many notable artists. He is also a recipient of MacArthur Fellowship (1991) and the National Endowment for the Arts' National Heritage Fellowship. He has married thrice and had 11 children.
Published: N/A
Updated: January 23, 2014
