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Indian tabla player and composer (1951–2024) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zakir Hussain Allarakha Qureshi (9 March 1951 – 15 December 2024) was an Indian tabla player, composer, percussionist, music producer, and film actor. Widely regarded as the greatest tabla player of his generation and one of the greatest percussionists of all time,[1][2][3] he was known for bringing Indian classical music to a global audience. He was the eldest son of the tabla player Alla Rakha,[4] and won four Grammy Awards.[5]
Zakir Hussain | |
|---|---|
Hussain in 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Zakir Allarakha Qureshi |
| Born | 9 March 1951 Bombay, Bombay State, India |
| Died | 15 December 2024 (aged 73) San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | Tabla |
| Years active | 1963–2024 |
| Labels | HMV |
| Website | Official website  |
| Honours |
|
Hussain was awarded the United States National Endowment for the Arts' National Heritage Fellowship, the highest award given to traditional artists and musicians. He was also awarded the Government of India's Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1990 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, Ratna Sadsya, in 2018.
Hussain received seven Grammy Award nominations, with four wins,[4] including three in 2024.[5][6] He was described as the most recognizable exponent of the tabla by The Guardian, and The New York Times marveled that the "blur of his fingers rivals the beat of a hummingbird's wings."[7]
Zakir Hussain Allarakha Qureshi was born on 9 March 1951 in present-day Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, to tabla master Alla Rakha Qureshi.[8][9]
Hussain started performing in concerts by the age of 7 and began touring by the age of 12.[8]
He attended St. Michael's High School in Mahim and graduated from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai.[10]
Hussain played on George Harrison's 1973 album Living in the Material World and John Handy's 1973 album Hard Work. He also performed on Van Morrison's 1979 album Into the Music and Earth, Wind & Fire's 1983 album Powerlight.[11]
Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, who had known Hussain since the 1960s,[12] invited him to create the special album Planet Drum, featuring drummers from different parts of the world. Featured along with Hussain, from India, was Vikku Vinayakram, with whom Hussain had collaborated in Shakti. The first Planet Drum album, released in 1991 on the Rykodisc label, went on to earn the 1992 Grammy Award for Best World Music Album, the first Grammy ever awarded in this category.[13][14] The Global Drum Project album and tour brought Mickey Hart, Hussain, Sikiru Adepoju, and Giovanni Hidalgo together again in a reunion sparked by the 15th anniversary of the Planet Drum album. The album Global Drum Project won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the 51st Grammy Awards Ceremony held on 8 February 2009.[15]
Hussain composed, performed and acted as Indian music advisor for the Malayalam film Vanaprastham, a 1999 Cannes Film Festival entry which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival (AFI Fest) in 1999, and won awards at 2000 Istanbul International Film Festival (Turkey), 2000 Mumbai International Film Festival (India), and 2000 National Film Awards (India).[16][17][18][19] He composed soundtracks for several movies, most notably In Custody and The Mystic Masseur by Ismail Merchant, and played tabla on the soundtracks of Francis Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Bernardo Bertolucci's Little Buddha, and other films.[20][21] He starred in several films specifically showcasing his musical performance both solo and with different bands, including the 1998 documentary Zakir and His Friends,[22] and the documentary The Speaking Hand: Zakir Hussain and the Art of the Indian Drum (2003 Sumantra Ghosal).[23] Hussain co-starred as Inder Lal in the 1983 Merchant Ivory film Heat and Dust, for which he was an associate music director.[24]
Hussain was a founding member of Bill Laswell's world music supergroup Tabla Beat Science.[25]
In 2016, Hussain was amongst many musicians invited by President Obama to the International Jazz Day 2016 All-Star Global Concert at the White House.[26]
Haridas Vhatkar made Hussain's tablas for more than 18 years.[27] Haridas said he learned how to make tablas so he could specially make them for Hussain.[27]
In a conversation with author Nasreen Munni Kabir, as written in her book Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music, Hussain stated that he did not play at private gatherings, corporate events, or weddings; he believed music should not be heard at events where folks come to socialise, drink or enjoy a meal, but instead should be the sole purpose of the event.[27]
Hussain was named an Old Dominion Fellow by the Humanities Council at Princeton University, where he resided for the 2005–2006 semester as full professor in the music department.[28] He was also a visiting professor at Stanford University.[29] In May 2022, he was conferred the honorary Doctor of Law (LLD) degree for his contribution to the field of music by the University of Mumbai.[30]
Nasreen Munni Kabir compiled 15 interview sessions (each lasting about 2 hours) from 2016 to 2017 into the book Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music, which was published in 2018.[27] The book takes the reader through Hussain's life from his youth, his years of intense training, and his growth as a musician.[27]
Hussain married Antonia Minnecola, a Kathak dancer and teacher, who was also his manager.[31] They had two daughters, Anisa Qureshi and Isabella Qureshi. Anisa graduated from UCLA and is a film maker. Isabella is studying dance in Manhattan.[32]
Hussain has two brothers: Taufiq Qureshi, a percussionist, and Fazal Qureshi, also a tabla player. Their brother Munawar died at a young age when he was attacked by a rabid dog.[27] His eldest sister Bilquis died before Hussain was born. Another sister, Razia, died due to complications during a cataract surgery, just a few hours before their father's death in 2000.[27] He has another sister named Khurshid.[27][33]
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Hussain died from complications arising due to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in San Francisco, California, on 15 December 2024, at the age of 73.[34][35]
According to Neyaz Farooquee, he was one of the world's greatest tabla players. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was "a true genius who revolutionised the world of Indian classical music." English guitarist John McLaughlin, who performed with Hussain in the band Shakti, described him as "the King, in whose hands, rhythm became magic."[35]
| Title | Date | Collaborators |
|---|---|---|
| Evening Ragas | 1970 | Vasant Rai |
| Shanti | 1971 | |
| Rolling Thunder | 1972 | Mickey Hart |
| Shakti | 1975 | Shakti with John McLaughlin |
| Karuna Supreme | 1976 | John Handy with Ali Akbar Khan |
| Hard Work | 1976 | John Handy |
| A Handful of Beauty | 1976 | Shakti with John McLaughlin |
| Diga | 1976 | Diga Rhythm Band |
| Natural Elements | 1977 | Shakti with John McLaughlin |
| Morning Ragas | 1979 | Vasant Rai |
| Who's to Know | 1980 | L. Shankar |
| Song for Everyone | 1985 | L. Shankar |
| Making Music | 1987 | Jan Garbarek, John McLaughlin and Hariprasad Chaurasia |
| Tabla Duet | 1988 | Alla Rakha |
| Venu | 1989 | Hariprasad Chaurasia |
| At the Edge | 1990 | Mickey Hart |
| Maestro's Choice Series One | 1991 | Alla Rakha |
| Planet Drum | 1991 | Mickey Hart |
| When Words Disappear | 1991 | David Trasoff |
| Flights of Improvisation | 1992 | |
| Sangeet Sartaj | 1992 | |
| The One and Only | 1992 | |
| Zakir Hussain and the Rhythm Experience | 1992 | |
| Music of the Deserts | 1993 | |
| Rag Madhuvanti / Rag Misra Tilang | 1993 | Shivkumar Sharma |
| Concert for Peace | 1993 | Ravi Shankar |
| Rag Rageshri | 1993 | Shivkumar Sharma |
| Jog And Rageshri | 1994 | |
| Ustad Amjad Ali Khan & Zakir Hussain | 1994 | Amjad Ali Khan |
| Golden Krithis Colours | 1994 | Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan |
| Raga Aberi | 1995 | L. Shankar |
| Maestro's Choice – Series Two | 1995 | Sultan Khan| |
| Raag Maand Bhairav | 1995 | Vilayat Khan |
| World Network Series, Vol. 1: India- Raga Purya Kalyan | 1995 | Shivkumar Sharma |
| The Elements – Space | 1996 | |
| Mickey Hart's Mystery Box | 1996 | Mickey Hart |
| Kirwani | 1997 | |
| Magical Moments of Rhythm | 1997 | |
| And the Rhythm Experience | 1998 | |
| Essence of Rhythm | 1998 | |
| Night Spinner | 1998 | George Brooks |
| Supralingua | 1998 | Mickey Hart |
| Fire Dance | 1998 | Pat Martino |
| Save Our Children | 1998 | Pharoah Sanders |
| Remember Shakti | 1999 | Remember Shakti |
| Spirit into Sound | 1999 | Mickey Hart |
| The Believer | 2000 | Remember Shakti |
| Tala Matrix | 2000 | Tabla Beat Science |
| Golden Strings of the Sarode | 2001 | Aashish Khan |
| Saturday Night in Bombay | 2001 | Remember Shakti |
| Selects | 2002 | |
| Summit | 2002 | George Brooks |
| The Best of Mickey Hart: Over the Edge and Back | 2002 | Mickey Hart |
| Live in San Francisco at Stern Grove | 2002 | Tabla Beat Science |
| Ustad Mohammad Omar: Virtuoso from Afghanistan | 2002 | |
| Energy | 2003 | |
| Live at Miles Davis Hall | 2004 | Remember Shakti |
| Live at 38th Montreux Jazz Festival | 2004 | Remember Shakti |
| Punjabi Dhamar | 2004 | |
| Raag Chandrakauns | 2004 | |
| Shared Moments | 2004 | Alla Rakha |
| Sangam | 2006 | Charles Lloyd, Eric Harland |
| Soukha | 2006 | V. Selvaganesh (with John McLaughlin, U. Srinivas, Vikku Vinayakram) |
| Global Drum Project | 2007 | Mickey Hart, Imran Hussain, Chandan Sharma, Sikiru Adepoju, Giovanni Hidalgo |
| The Melody of Rhythm | 2009 | Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer |
| Mysterium Tremendum | 2012 | Mickey Hart Band |
| Good Hope | 2019 | Dave Holland, Chris Potter |
| Is That So? | 2020 | John McLaughlin, Shankar Mahadevan |
| In the Groove | 2022 | Mickey Hart |
| Trios: Sacred Thread | 2022 | Charles Lloyd, Julian Lage |
| As We Speak | 2023[36] | Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, with Rakesh Chaurasia |
| This Moment | 2023 | Shakti |
| Sources:[37][32][38] | ||
The line "Zakir Hussain Tabela Ivaltana" in the Tamil song "Telephone Manipol" in the 1996 film Indian, directed by S. Shankar is a tribute to him. This song was written by poet Vairamuthu.[72]
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