Two Gharanas, One Musician – Ustad Shahbaz Hussain (Talk)

How three legendary gurus shaped one of Europe’s finest tabla players 

Shahbaz Hussain started learning tabla at five, taught by his father, the vocalist Ustad Mumtaz Hussain. Then came an education few players receive: years under Ustad Faiyaz Khan of the Delhi gharana, Ustad Shaukat Hussain Khan of the Punjab gharana, and finally Ustad Allah Rakha — the man behind Ravi Shankar’s rhythm section for decades. Three masters, two distinct schools, one musician who absorbed them both. 

That dual training shows in how Hussain plays. He’s accompanied Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Ustad Shahid Parvez, and Ghulam Ali. He leads the fusion group Indus. He teaches across Northern England. And he believes — firmly — that audiences benefit from understanding how tabla works: what a gharana is, how rhythm operates in Hindustani music, and why different schools produce different sounds. 

In this talk, Hussain shares the stories, lessons, and musical thinking he’s gathered across three decades of performance and teaching.  

n.b. this hour-long talk is followed by a 30-minute Q&A session with the audience. 

Location: Frobisher Rooms, Auditorium 1