Amjad Ali Khan is one of the undisputed masters of the music world. For many, he takes on a celestial avatar when he is playing the Sarod. Born to Sarod icon Haafiz Ali Khan, he gave his first performance at the age of six. Over the course of his career, he has delivered his music in a flexible instrument line that is vocal in its expressiveness. He has reinvented the technique of Sarod playing which today is distinct in its nomenclature. He has won numerous accolades including a Grammy nomination, the Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum and has performed at venues the world over including Carnegie Hall and the Royal Albert Hall. Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan represent the 7th generation of a musical lineage, as sons and disciples of the sarod icon,Amjad Ali Khan. With him they have performed across the globe at the Kennedy Center, and Smithsonian and WOMAD festivals on many continents. They have also collaborated with guitarist Derek Trucks of the Allman Brothers Band, among others, and established themselves as a duo, carrying forward their musical legacy in sync with both tradition and contemporary times. In 2014, Amjad Ali Khan, Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan performed at the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo, Norway on as well as the Nobel Peace PrizeConcert along with the lineup of Queen Latifa, Steven Tyler, Nuno Bettencourt and Laura Mvula. They present traditional Indian Classical Ragas and Indian Folk Music that will be interpreted on their Sarods.
Dr. Kristina Jacobsen, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology, releases book
The Sound of Navajo Country: Music, Language and Diné Belonging (University of North Carolina Press), examines cultural intimacy and generational nostalgia on the Navajo (Diné) Nation (click here for brief interviews in English and Italian about her research).
Spain the ‘Eternal Maja’: Goya, Majismo, and the Reinvention of Spanish National Identity in Granados’s Goyescas.
This talk will explore the influence of artist Francisco Goya (1746-1828) on one of the greatest masterpieces of Spanish music, the Goyescas suite for solo piano by Enrique Granados (1867-1916).
‘Sol y Sombra’: Music in Images in the Arts of New Spain presented by Ray Hernández-Durán
Scenes depicting musicians performing are found in a range of colonial art forms. Here, I briefly explore religious music from the 16th century through an examination of mission design and manuscript illuminations, and secular or profane music from the 18th century represented in genre paintings, domestic spaces, and biombos.