Zakir Hussain: Masters of Percussion

A classical tabla virtuoso of the highest order, Zakir Hussain has thrilled Williams Center audiences in a memorable trio program with Edgar Meyer and Béla Fleck and in a duo program with master sitarist Niladri Kumar. His return to our stage will be his most expansive journey into the world of Asian music, with his heralded seven-person Masters of Percussion ensemble. Hussain is a singular figure in the field of percussion and an international phenomenon in the burgeoning realm of world music. His consistently brilliant and exciting performances have established him as a national treasure in India, and as one of his country’s reigning cultural ambassadors. His playing is marked by uncanny intuition and masterful improvisational dexterity, founded in formidable knowledge and study. His phenomenal ensemble includes Fazal Qureshi as a second tabla virtuoso and soloist on the kanjira, a frame drum from South India. Melodic textures are provided by Rakesh Chaurasia on the bansuri bamboo flute and by Sabir Khan on sarangi, a bowed instrument in the sitar family. Navin Sharma is heard on the dholak, a resonant and powerful double headed drum, and Uzbek master Abbos Kosimov displays his phenomenal virtuosity on the the doyra frame drum. The evening promises to be a sensuous journey into the musical worlds of India and “Silk Road” Asia, memorable and enduring.