“There are many different kinds of variety of sound,” Ali Akbar Khan once told me, when I first interviewed him in 1995. For North Indian classical music, which the Bengali-born sarode virtuoso taught at the College of Music named for him in San Rafael, this was an obvious understatement.
When he passed away in 2009, Khansahib (as he’s called honorifically) left behind more than 360 of his original ragas, compositions built on 12-note scales of whole tones, half tones, and microtones, and created in accordance with a particular time of day, mood, and other factors. Many of Khansahib's compositions came to life before the eyes and ears of his students, who included members of his own family, in the process of teaching.
“When we first were married, and before we had kids, I started noticing that under everything we sat on, and in all the cabinets, were reel-to-reel tapes,” recalls Khansahib’s widow Mary, who’s now director of the College. “It became evident to me that, while I was in his life, I should do something about this, making it accessible.”
Mary Khan, who studied the Indian tabla drum at the College, catalogued those tape recordings of her husband's concertizing at home and around the world, as well as tapes of his instruction at the College, which incorporated a variety of Indian classical instruments and vocals, and attracted multitudes of students from other musical genres, including jazz and rock. As technology evolved, Mary Khan expanded the recording process to video, and sought funding for a comprehensive digital archive, assembled with the help of her and Khansahib’s sons Alam, now a teacher of sarode and vocals, and Manik.
Stored on a 10-terabyte computer system, funded in part by the James Irvine Foundation, and headquartered at the College, the new Ali Akbar Khan Library will be celebrated with opening day ceremonies on Saturday, February 21. “It’s a free, public library, and we’ll have a tour from 4 to 6 p.m.,” says Mary Khan. “At 6, we’ll have a light dinner. And then at 7, Alam will perform a classical concert, with a tabla player.”
Future visitors to the Library will be guided by librarians in checking out ragas at computer stations, linking to video and/or audio records of Khansahib’s classwork in each raga, as well as associated performances and musical notation. The database will also include photographs, articles, reviews, and all of Khansahib’s formal recordings and publications. Research will proceed according to the student’s level of expertise, and a beginning-level introduction to the basics of North Indian classical music will be made available on the internet as of opening day. For more info, call the College office at (415) 454-6372.
“For all of us who haven’t been in Khansahib’s classes for six year’s, it’s amazing,” Mary Khan testifies. “He’s back, and you’re learning from him again!”