Let’s converse in music

Ustaad Zakir Hussain, who is slated to visit the city on December 17, says he is all set for a spontaneous interaction with his audience
What do you have in store for the Hyderabadi audience as you perform at the Chowmahallah Palace tomorrow? If a musician can predict that, he will be God! With Indian music, especially, it’s different. It’s not like pop music where the songs are pre-recorded.When I perform on stage it is to basically project and express the emotions that I feel at that time. It is spontaneous. My music comes from the great masters who have passed it on and though it might have changed and shaped differently over the centuries, the essence is the same. Even if you ask me in what order I am going to perform, I cannot tell you. For me, a performance is a way to express my love, connection, affection and reverence to the music of my country. I hope it all comes through on stage. And the other most important thing is for the audience to get into the same wavelength and to establish that it takes 10-12 minutes on stage. The audience is just as much a part of my performance. Their response inspires me. As the musical conversation between us grows, the mood of the evening and the ambience adds to it and magic can be made!
At 60 you still exhibit the enthusiasm of a youngster who is beginning his career. What’s the secret? Now, you are making me feel old! A senior citizen huh!? But then, my enthusiasm comes from my connection with music — me and my instrument, me and my fellow artistes. For me, everyday is a new day. It’s very similar to turning on a news channel. For most part, it is pretty much the same stuff of day-to-day happenings that have a familiar ring, but then out of the 80 per cent, there will be 20 per cent that’s positive. It is the expectation of that 20 per cent that makes it fun. It is that anticipation of finding out something new that challenges me to go on.
Who is accompanying you on your Hyderabad tour? In the field of music, we had two major losses this year — one is Jagjit Singh and the other is Sarangi player, Ustaad Sultan Khan. It’s going to be an emotional moment for me as I share with the audience the loss of the great maestro and perform with his son, Sabir Khan — the legacy that he has left behind. This is the first time we will both be performing on stage. This is going to be a homage to someone who had been my colleague and companion for 25 years.
Can you tell us about your upcoming US-Canada tour in March and April 2012? This is something that I do every year. The tour basically showcases the masters of percussion traditions rarely heard on stage in India and abroad. In India, we have 200 different drumming traditions and tabla is a small part of it. I started these tours to give onstage visibility to drummers from remote parts of India. The tour goes on throughout the year. It starts off in March-April in the US and Canada and moves on to Europe in summer and in fall, we perform in places like Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia. The coordination takes a few years as I get them to perform at small concerts in Mumbai and then I interact with them to figure out which combination works best.
The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred thing in India. Whom are you training to take on the mantle? I was a senior student of my father and there are many students of his who have done very well all over the world. I am their senior guru bhai (he reels out a long list of names). Today, the tabla is enjoying great success. There is an incredibly deep bench strength. It is no more a closed gharana, it has opened itself up for change.