USTAD, ON & OFF THE STAGE

Zakir Hussain didn't just carry forward the legacy of his illustrious father, Ustad Alla Rakha Khan, he elevated tabla-playing to heights never scaled before by taking classical music to the masses and making his art form accessible to all

- Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia

An angelic presence has gone from our lives and I am grappling with that loss. Zakir was the gentlest of souls, a beacon of warmth for everyone he encountered-be they stalwarts such as Pt Ravi Shankar, Shivji (Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma), myself, or be they younger artistes, students, people handling lights, sound at the concerts or those serving chai - he treated everyone with the same openness and respect.

When I first heard of his ill-health, I told myself, "He's in the US, surrounded by state-of-the-art health care and the best doctors, surely he'll pull through; he has to..." Even now, though it's been some hours since his death, a part of me expects to hear his ringing laughter any moment, as if he will call to lighten the heaviness in my chest.

Elevating tabla-playing to new heights