Zakir Hussain in Dubai

Valentine’s Day is extra special this year for this season, it will be music that will express love at its best. And who better to make your day seem special than a musician who has re-defined the boundaries of Indian classical instruments – Zakir Hussain. Dubai fans are in for a treat as the maestro will be here in the city next week for a concert called Nirvana 2013 after a gap of nearly four years.

Zakir has always been at the forefront of musicians promoting Indian classical music world wide. Born in Mumbai to the legendary tabla player Alla Rakha, he was a child prodigy who had started touring by the age of 12. He went to the United States in 1970, beginning his international career which includes more than 150 concert dates a year!

The maestro has also had his brush with films. He 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 several awards at various film festivals. He has also composed soundtracks for several movies, most notably ‘In Custody’ and ‘The Mystic Masseur’ by Ismail Merchant, and has played tabla on the soundtracks of Francis Coppola's ‘Apocalypse Now’, Bernardo Bertolucci's ‘Little Buddha’ and other films.

However, it’s not just Zakir’s magic that will be on display on Valentine’s Day. Nirvana 2013 features Zakir alongside Edgar Meyer (Upright Bass), Bela Fleck (Banjo), U Srinivas (Mandolin) and Rakesh Chaurasia (Flute).

Its promoters say the experience will be unlike any other. The state of euphoria that will arise due to the blend of Indian classical music, Eastern beats, Jazz, Bluegrass, Worldgrass, Folk, Folk Rock and World Music will be like no other. What makes the evening all the more special is that these musicians don’t record often together so it’s indeed going to be a magical night.
Between them, these greats have over 43 Grammy nominations and awards apart from the prestigious Sangeet Ratna and Padmashree Awards. They have performed alongside greats such as Yo-Yo Ma, Bill Laswell, John McLaughin, Joshua Bell, Alison Krauss, Dave Mathews Band, Shankar Mahadevan, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and many more.

The concert will be held at Sheikh Rashid Hall, World Trade Centre from 7.30 pm onwards. Nirvana 2013 is brought to Dubai by Emirates NBD in association with EMAX Electronics and Dubai Calendar.