Shafaatullah Khan

Shafaatullah Khan is a tabla, sitar and surbahar player. He is the fourth (youngest) son of Imrat Khan

Biography

In the rich history of Indian classical music, Shafaatullah Khan excels in performing on three different instruments Sitar, Surbahar and Tabla, thus distinguishing him from others in the Imdadkhani Gharana.

He began his career at an early age on sitar and surbahar under the tutelage of his father Ustad Imrat Khan. In addition, Shafaatullah also studied tabla under Ustad Ibrahim Khan, a well known master of the old and rare tabla compositions of various regions in India.

Performances

Shafaatullah debuted at the Kingslynn Festival in England at the age of 11 which was opened by the Queen Mother. He has subsequently performed live worldwide for the last 2 decades at such prestigious venues as the Acropolis, Athens; Royal Albert Hall, London; The Great Hall of the Kremlin, Moscow; Lincoln Center, New York; Suntory Hall, Tokyo; and the Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C. His television credits include a program shared with Ray Charles on Bio-Bannholf in Germany, several BBC programs, interviews on TV Asia's 'Face to Face,' Philadelphia's FOX & WYBE networks, and many other telecasts worldwide.

Teaching

In addition to performing in numerous festivals and concerts, Shafaatullah Khan has also led lecture-demonstrations and conducted workshops at college campuses throughout the country, including Harvard University, UCLA, Haverford College, Bryn Mawr College, University of Vermont, University of New Hampshire, and Columbia University, and for SPICMACAY organizations in India and the US. At the invitation of the University of Pennsylvania, he taught at their Department of South Asian Regional Studies for three years. Shafaatullah has also been an Artist-in-Residence at Lafayette College in Easton, PA for two years.

However, he was barred from teaching minors by a Pennsylvania county judge in May 2008 due to an allegation of sexual misconduct.§

Recordings

His various recordings are available on Nimbus, Edelweiss, EMI, Lyrichord, and Music of the World labels, in addition to many others. Recently he released a series of three CDs entitled "The Rhythms of Nature" which were produced by Deepak Chopra. On these historic recordings, Shafaatullah performed on the sitar/surbahar, and accompanied himself on the tabla; a first in the history of Indian Classical Music.

External links

* [http://www.shafaatullahkhan.com/ Shafaatullah Khan's website] § [http://www.philly.com/inquirer/home_region/20080528_Prominent_musician_charged_with_sex_assault.html]