There Will Never Be Another Like Zakir Hussain

Regarding the accuracy of music and movie awards, one must ask: are they the gold standard of excellence?

We have felt for a while now that there cannot possibly be a yardstick for being the “best” in a particular category or style.

Music is heard and appreciated differently by different people – and even differently by the same person at different times.

Winning and possessing one or several Grammy Awards does not necessarily reflect accurately on the caliber or skill of the musician/composer/ producer of the piece.

I believe that canvassing for jury attention and generally campaigning for getting ‘noticed’ and ranked is not uncommon.

Much the same prevails at film awards all over the world.

In the world of jazz, Charlie Parker, Lester Young, Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday were superstars by any reckoning. It is irrelevant how many Grammys – if any, came their way. They, and several others, will always occupy places right at the top of our reckoning.

In the recent edition of the Grammy Awards, we noticed that the percussion colossus, the incomparable Ustad Zakir Hussain was overlooked even for a mention. Zakir bhai, as we fondly refer to this maestro passed away just a few weeks ago in California – an event that has shocked and saddened his legion of fans and followers all over the world. He was an undoubted wizard on the tabla when accompanying the cream of Hindustani classical musicians from the legends Pandit Ravi Shankar, Ustad Vilayat Khan, Ustad Bismillah Khan to a who’s who of Hindustani musicians. Zakir bhai added a dimension of class above and beyond his role as a tabla player.

One invariably sat up and took notice of an extra layer of class and sophistication in the concert when Zakir Hussain was playing. In that, he emulated his illustrious father Ustad Allah Rakha who was a long standing accompanist of Pandit Ravi Shankar and with whom he played all over the world.

There was indeed magic in Zakir bhai’s fingers and in his thought process about the music he played.

But he went way beyond being just a tabla player. Zakir was a percussionist in several different types of music. He played percussion with traditional jazz musicians so seamlessly that one would think that the tabla was a traditional jazz instrument right out of New Orleans! He toured the world with musicians of the most varied types and cultures. Zakir bhai was certainly a one-off, an absolute genius and hero worshipped the world over. He mentored serious jazz drummers, played Cuban percussion with bands from that country and played like a native Cuban.

There will never be another like Zakir Hussain and we consider ourselves extremely fortunate to have been contemporaries of his and having had the privilege of hearing and watching him perform in person on several occasions.

By not even mentioning Zakir Hussain during their In Memoriam segment, I feel that the Grammy Awards have let themselves down, diminished the aura of being the gold standard for awarding music performances and musicians by “overlooking” this great musician. Their loss entirely; we will look at their future evaluations of music and musicians with reservations.

Let us not always get carried away by the numbers for Grammy, Oscar, Emmy or other awards awarded to an artist. Listen to the music, watch the movies and enjoy them for the pleasure they bring you. Let us not judge creativity by numbers!

The famous German composer and conductor Paul Hindemith had said a hundred years ago: “Listen to the music and evaluate it for yourself. Your ears are the ultimate arbiters – your ears are the Supreme Court! Don’t let anybody tell you otherwise.”

Sagely advice indeed! Pay heed and decide about the music you hear. Your opinion is the most important of all.

We borrow an expression used in the game of cricket: Form is temporary, class is permanent. There is so much of it that applies to musicians and awards given.

Zakir Hussain was always classy.