Sarod, the 25-stringed North Indian classical instrument rich in resonances, plays well with others, but is best savored solo. Master player Alam Khan knows this, having studied at his father Ustad Ali Akbar Khan’s knee and taking up his style and lineage. On Immersion, he unfurls the instrument’s stirring beauty via several ragas, a tribute to his family’s accumulated knowledge and his own carefully honed artistic sense.Khan is a respected teacher and collaborator, a torchbearer of the Maihar gharana (musical family or clan) which was created by his grandfather Acharya Baba Allauddin Khan. Khan absorbed these facets by training since childhood with his father, who brought the instrument and greater awareness of Indian classical music in general to American audiences in the ’60s. “My father was a legend and his style was unique. What he passed on to me was a deep sense of that style, the feeling, touch, tone, all those kinds of things. Once I learned to emulate what he wanted me to play, I learned the reasons behind why I’m playing that. My father has passed on, but I want to continue his aesthetic and approach.”Part of that approach adheres to the essence of the raga and its connection to a particular time of day and mood. “Every raga was created for a certain time of day. When you play or listen to the ragas at the correct time, the full potential and wonder comes out,” he notes. “The traditional system of ragas and time is very...
CD $12.00
04/20/2018
MP3 $9.90
03/30/2018
FLAC $11.99
03/30/2018
Son of the late legendary Sarode Maestro Ali Akbar Khan, Alam Khan is the face of a new generation of Sarode players. His contemporary EP "Vignettes" will take you through a cinematic landscape blending elements of Indian classical, loop based playing and world music.
MP3 $4.99
05/19/2017
FLAC $5.99
05/19/2017
Son of the legendary Sarode Maestro Ali Akbar Khan, Alam has been touching the hearts of audiences worldwide for the past 15 years. Since his initial training into the Maihar Seni Gharana at the age of seven, Alam was blessed to learn and live in the traditional stye of Guru and student. Ali Akbar Khan’s careful crafting and guidance shows in each note as well as in Alam’s imaginative way of expressing the ancient ragas passed down from the courts of Emperor Akbar by Mian Tansen in the 16th century. His is joined on this CD by Salar Nader, one of the youngest and most sought-after talents of his generation. A virtuoso tabla player with many recordings under his belt including the theatrical score for the stage premiere of Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner”. “Making “Shades of Sarode” was my attempt at playing shorter, improvised pieces of Indian classical music on Sarode. A raga’s duration can usually last up to an hour or longer when played in it’s entirety. There are many sections to a performance which can be greatly elaborated upon, but for this album I chose to present the listener with an array of ragas and different moods to experience in a shorter amount of time.” - Alam
CD $12.00
11/08/2011
MP3 $6.93
11/08/2011