R.I.P. Ali Akbar Khan, Indian Musician
Travel Blog • Jim Benning • 06.25.09 | 1:31 PM ET
Ali Akbar Khan. REUTERS/Adam TannerThe Bengali-born musician, who died last week at the age of 87, was regarded by many as a genius who helped popularize Indian classical music around the globe. He played the 25-string sarod.
When he arrived in the U.S. half a century ago, many he encountered were confounded by his origins.
He told Asia Week:
“When I came in ’55, because I was in Indian dress, people on the street in New York came out of the bars and shops and followed us. They asked me, ‘Who are you? Where are you from?’ When I said, ‘India,’ some of them didn’t even know where it was. Or others who knew I was a musician asked funny questions like, ‘How can you play music in India with all the tigers and snakes and monkeys you have to fight off?’”
Here he performs via YouTube:
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Jim Benning is the editor and co-founder of World Hum.
