"The greatest musician in the world": Steve Heilig interviews Ali Akbar Khan

Whole Earth, Fall, 2002 by Steve Heilig

SH: You opened your school here in 1967. How many students have you had?

AAK: About 15,000. Many are professionals now, and many are still learning. The longest a student has been with us is twenty-nine years. Some have gone to open branches of the school in other countries. I support these branches, as it is important for more people to know about this music.

SH: I know this is more than a strictly artistic mission for you.

AAK: Yes. You need this music in your soul and mind. The melodies and ragas and rhythms are created by God in such a way that if you perform them correctly, they will give you the best kind of medicine for your soul, mind, and body. Therefore it can make you completely realize and correct what is bad in your life.

SH: This sounds to me like the similar claims made for meditation.

AAK: It's easier than that.

SH: Practicing music for twelve or more hours a day for decades is easier than meditating?

AAK: Yes, for many people. It is difficult for many, who cannot learn fast, and have little patience. You have to practice so many hours, to give your life to it. But once you do that, you have a peaceful mind, and you want to help others, which is really what God wants for us.

SH: I've read that you feel this music can bring about outer peace, political reconciliation for example, in addition to the inner kind. I've heard this claim for other musics and would really like to believe that, but I haven't seen it work.

AAK: Because they are not doing it right. It is like medicine--if you do not mix it right, it will not work, and can even hurt. Instead of playing real music of peace, people are drinking, smoking, using drugs. It gives them all sorts of headaches (laughter).

SH: Do you think if we could get, say, the leaders of India and Pakistan, or even of Israel and Palestine, together and force them to really listen to the right music they might see the importance of peace, and work things out?

AAK: Yes. I really do. And why not try this? I think even politicians who are also musicians are going to be more concerned with peace. Look at Clinton, his attitude to the world was different than those who came after him, or others. He had a tune in him.

SH: That's one way of looking at him(laughter). I wonder about the "purity" of raps though--even some revered Indian musicians are mixing modern sounds in, like your friend Zakir Hussain and Tabla Beat Science. And even you have played with Jazz musicians like John Handy. Do you approve of such blending?

AAK: It's OK, if they know what they are doing; some kind of what might be called "light classical" musics are OK for experimenting. The real ragas are not. It's like eating; after supper you might like some dessert. But if that's all you eat, you'll get sick.

There are six main ragas, to correspond with the six seasons we have in India, and they were created by God before the planet was. They were taught to Lord Shiva and he created for each raga which is male--six raginis or female variations, for thirty-six in all. The disciples of Shiva learned these ragas. When Earth was created, they found good humans to teach. Each raga is meant to be played for one to two hours, and then it changes with the time of day. They are to be played at certain times of the day and night, starting at sunrise. It is not OK to mix morning and evening ragas. To play them at the wrong time could be very harmful to you. Again, it is like food--you don't eat leg of lamb for breakfast.