Drum Roll Goes On

I am going to be a senior citizen,but I still practise for hours before a concert, winks Ustad Zakir Hussain,after a performance at the Kamani Auditorium on Sunday.

I am going to be a senior citizen,but I still practise for hours before a concert, winks Ustad Zakir Hussain,after a performance at the Kamani Auditorium on Sunday. He is a gregarious 58-year-old,who greets with an unexpected and loud Happy Valentines Day and a chivalrous kiss on the back of the hand. The energy doesnt wane his locks are performing a ballet all their own and his fingers still seem to be cajoling an invisible tabla.

There is a caesura as he talks about his latest project a world music album with American banjo player Bela Fleck and multi-instrumentalist and composer Edgar Meyer. I have worked with them before. Every project ends up being a culmination of all the past experiences. I hope this is also appreciated, says Hussain,who has won the Grammy twice. He is also working on a DVD project titled Masters of Percussion that will feature his performances.

Earlier in the evening,Hussain began the concert with purely Hindustani classical taals to build a first session with Dilshad Khan playing the lehra on the sarangi. The uthaan or the opening tukra was followed by a groovy theka,which Hussain is known for. Head banging to the rhythm,he delved into lightning-speed taans. That is the spine of the performance,the rest are just improvisations, he says.

Hussains thumps on the tabla began with short stories relating to every piece. There was the sound of rain and thunder,Lord Krishna being scolded by his beloved Radha for coming late and horses galloping at a distance the maestro challenged himself with diverse rhythm structures while reciting the tabla bols and playing them alongside. For me,these are music flirtations. I cant just keep playing purely classical music. My audience too needs to understand the intricate patterns, he says.

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