DC Edit | Zakir Hussain’s grand musical legacy
Deccan ChronicleAs news about the legendary tabla maestro Zakir Hussain flitted between hope and despair, prompting prayers and tributes, what stood out was how everyone began recalling his music as a divine force that would see it defy human mortality. The emptiness of the unfillable void left by the pioneer of fusion music will feel crushing with relief coming in the form of a grand legacy of recorded work that will be an eternal tribute to the way a musical genius elevated the percussion instrument to glorious heights that could not be imagined even in the time of his father Ustad Alla Rakha who mentored him. But it is his story of musical collaborations that brought about a revolution in the perception of Indian classical music around the world that will remain his finest contribution to universal music. Today, if the notes of the sitar, sarod and santoor and the rhythmic beats of the tabla from classical Indian music are virtually de rigueur in background music to films, be they from Hollywood or any other, it is a tribute to a maestro who made fusion music a phenomenon that will resonate for generations to come.