The Ali Akbar College of Music has embarked on a year-long celebration of Maestro Ali Akbar Khan, in honor of his Centennial birthday. Experience the final concert of the year, and our first in-person performance! This event will bring together Maestro Khan’s two sons, Alam and Manik Khan, on sarod, alongside his long-time tabla accompanist, Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri.
Old First Concerts has a long history with the Ali Akbar College of Music, as many of its historic performances have taken place in the church. This is also the first in-person concert the AACM has offered since the pandemic began; and as the final note in our year-long celebration of Maestro Khan, we felt it was the perfect historical venue.
Alam spent his formative years learning the sarod at his father’s feet, touring internationally with him from the tender age of 13. Following in the footsteps of his family, Manik began to formally train with his father in his early teenage years as well. Swapan accompanied the Maestro for over 30 years, with an unmatched rapport and genuine friendship. His musical relationship with Alam and Manik creates an exceptional empathy and compatibility on stage. This joining of the Maestro’s sons and long-term collaborator will make for a special culmination of Maestro Ali Akbar Khan’s 100th birthday celebrations.
The AACM was founded in 1967, in the Bay Area, by Maestro Ali Akbar Khan. During his career, he often dreamed of being able to open a school of music; an institution where musicians and music lovers alike could exist together and be surrounded constantly by their shared interests. After opening his first school in Calcutta in 1956, Khansahib was drawn to California and the incredible interest he found when visiting the Bay Area. It was his father, the esteemed Acharya Baba Allauddin Khan, who instilled in Khansahib the importance of spreading and teaching this music to any and all who wish to learn. His influence was the basis for Khansahib’s vision and remains as the mission statement of the AACM.
This concert is a tribute and celebration of the life, music, and teachings of Maestro Khan, one of the greatest sarod players of our time.