Ustad Ali Akbar Khan:  Ali Akbar Khan is one of today's most accomplished classical musicians in Indian sub-continent and considered a "National Living Treasure". He is admired by both eastern and western musicians for his brilliant compositions and mastery of the sarode (a beautiful, 25-stringed instrument).

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan was born in 1922 in Bangladesh. He began his studies in music at the age of three from his father and guru Ustad Allauddin Khan, one of the greatest figures in classical music. He trained and practiced 18 hours a day. His father also trained his sister Shakuntala Devi (a famous Sitar player, unfortunately do not appear in any concert) and pandith Ravi Shankar (world famous Sitar player) at the same period. He continued learning Sarad until his father was 100 years old.

Ali Akbar Khan gave his first public performance in Allahabad at age of thirteen. In his early twenties, he became the court musician for the Maharaja of Jodhpur and given the title Ustad (master musician.)

The Classical music of North India is an uplifting and extraordinary music, dating back thousand of years. Concert violinist Yehudi Menuhin calls Ali Akbar Khan, "An absolute genius...the greatest musician in the world," and many have considered him the "Indian Johann Sebastian Bach."

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan's family traces its gharana (ancestral tradition) to Mian Tansen, a 16th century musical genius and court musician of Emperor Akbar.

Khansahib founded the Ali Akbar College of Music in Calcutta, India, in 1956. Later, recognizing the extraordinary interest and abilities of his Western students, he began teaching in America in 1965. In 1967, he founded the Ali Akbar College of Music, which moved to Marin County (California) the following year. He currently maintains a teaching schedule of 6 classes a week for 9 months of the year. Khansahib also opened a branch of his college in Basel, Switzerland, run by his disciple Ken Zuckerman, where he teaches each year during his yearly world tour.

Awards & Honors (Source: Ali Akbar College of Music)

1963, Khansahib was presented with the President of India award.

Distinguished Padma Bhusan award from the Government of India, as well as the highest honor presented to a civilian in India - the Padma Vibhusan - awarded to him in 1988.

Khansahib was awarded the Kalidas Sanman in 1991, by the Madya Pradesh Academy of Music and Fine Arts, and an honorary Doctorate Degree in Arts from the California Institute of the Arts, in Valencia, CA.

In June of 1991, Ali Akbar Khan became the first Indian musician to be awarded the most prestigious MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, the genius grant, in recognition of his excellent work in the field of creating, cultivating, and transmitting the highly complex musical tradition of Northern India.

Khansahib received a BAMMIE, the Bill Graham Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bay Area Music Awards Foundation, as a symbol of respect and appreciation for his long career and the immense body of work that continues to influence and inspire new generations.

He has received five GRAMMY nominations: in 1970 for Shree Rag, in 1983 for Misra Piloo, in 1996 for Then and Now, in 1997 for Legacy and most recently for Passing on the Tradition in 1998.

He has also received the degree of Doctor of Literature, honoree causa, from the Rabindra Bharati University in Calcutta.

He received additional awards from Dacca University (for his international contribution to the arts and music), from Delhi University and from Shantiniketan (Tagore University).

1997 was a landmark year for Ali Akbar Khan. In February, he was the second recipient to receive the Asian Paints Shiromani Award - Hall of Fame, following filmmaker Satyajit Ray.

In September, Ali Akbar Khan was chosen to receive the prestigious National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment of the Arts. It was presented by Mrs. Hillary Clinton at a ceremony in the White House.

In February, 1998, the San Francisco chapter of NARAS (National Academy of Recording Arts and Science) presented Khansahib with the Governor's Award for Outstanding Achievement. Most recently he received the Indira Gandhi Gold Plaque from the Asiatic Society of Calcutta, which recognized "his significant contribution to international understanding and intercultural cooperation."