One of my first introductions to Indian music came via Zakir Hussain and his wonderful collaborations with western artists like John McLaughlin (Shakti), Geirge Harrison and compatriot Trilok Gurtu. Listed high up on my list of favourite records is 1987’s MAKING MUSIC which I strongly recommend to you. It’s a classic.

Zakir Hussain Allarakha Qureshi (9 March 1951 - 15 December 2024) was an Indian tabla player, composer, percussionist, music producer, and film actor. He was known for bringing classical Indian music to a global audience. He was the eldest son of tabla player Alla Rakha, and won four Grammy Awards.

Hussain was awarded the United States National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowship, the highest award given to traditional artists and musicians. He was also awarded the Government of India’s Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1990, Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, Ratna Sadsya in 2018. Hussain received seven Grammy Award nominations, with four wins, including three in 2024.

Hussain played on George Harrison’s 1973 album LIVING IN THE MATERIAL WORLD and John Handy’s 1973 album HARD WORK. He also performed on Van Morrison’s 1979 album Into the Music and Earth, Wind & Fire’s 1983 album POWERLIGHT.

Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, who had known Hussain since the 1960s, invited him to create the special album PLANET DRUM, featuring drummers from different parts of the world. Featured along with Hussain, from India, was Vikku Vinayakram, with whom Hussain had collaborated in Shakti. The first PLANET DRUM album, released in 1991 on the Rykodisc label, went on to earn the 1992 Grammy Award for Best World Music Album, the first Grammy ever awarded in this category. The Global Drum Project album and tour brought Mickey Hart, Hussain, Sikiru Adepoju, and Giovanni Hidalgo together again in a reunion sparked by the 15th anniversary of the Planet Drum album. The album Global Drum Project won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the 51st Grammy Awards Ceremony held on 8 February 2009.

Hussain 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 awards at 2000 Istanbul International Film Festival (Turkey), 2000 Mumbai International Film Festival (India), and 2000 National Film Awards (India). He has 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. He starred in several films specifically showcasing his musical performance both solo and with different bands, including the 1998 documentary Zakir and His Friends, and the documentary The Speaking Hand: Zakir Hussain and the Art of the Indian Drum (2003 Sumantra Ghosal). Hussain co-starred as Inder Lal in the 1983 Merchant Ivory film Heat and Dust, for which he was an associate music director.

Hussain was a founding member of Bill Laswell’s world music supergroup Tabla Beat Science.

In 2016, Hussain was amongst many musicians invited by President Obama to the International Jazz Day 2016 All-Star Global Concert at the White House.

Haridas Vhatkar has been making Hussain’s tablas for more than 18 years. Haridas said he learned how to make tabla so he could specially make them for Hussain.

In a conversation with author Nasreen Munni Kabir, as written in her book Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music, Hussain stated that he did not play at private gatherings, corporate events, or weddings; he believed music should not be heard at events where folks come to socialise, drink or enjoy a meal (music should be the sole purpose of the event).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zakir_Hussain_(musician)