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Alla Rakha

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Alla Rakha was an Indian tabla player in Hindustani classical music, born in 1919 in a village in Jammu. At twelve he ran away from home to learn music. In Gurdaspur he became a pupil of Mian Kader Baksh, who adopted him and designated him as his successor as head of the Punjab tabla school. He also had singing lessons. In 1936 he worked for All India Radio in Lahore, and later in Bombay. From 1943 he composed for almost two dozen Hindi and Punjabi films, until in 1958 he turned to classical music.

Music and breakthrough

His collaboration with Ravi Shankar began in the early 1950s and lasted almost thirty years. Their performances at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 and at Woodstock in 1969 brought Indian classical music to a large Western audience. He also played at the Concert for Bangladesh in 1971. In 1968 he made the album Rich à la Rakha with the jazz drummer Buddy Rich. Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead admired him and studied his technique. In 1985 Alla Rakha founded the Alla Rakha Institute of Music in Mumbai.

Influence

His son Zakir Hussain also became a tabla player. Alla Rakha made the tabla known and loved in the West, and also bridged the gap between Carnatic and Hindustani music. He died in 2000.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Rich à la Rakha and notice how the tabla converses with a jazz drummer, with a steady rhythm and lightning-fast patterns.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists