Ustad Faiyaz Khan (alternative spelling Fiyaz Khan) (1934 – 12 November 2014) was a

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

player of international repute.

Biography

Faiyaz Khan was born in 1934 in Sikar,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

, into a family of musicians. Nazir Khan, his father, was a

sarangi The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked three-stringed instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, Sindhi folk music, Haryanvi folk music, Braj folk music, and Boro folk music (the ...

and

player at the court of the

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

Karauli Karauli (also formerly spelled Karoli or Karaulee) is a city located in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is located in the Braj region and holds religious importance in Hinduism. The city is the administrative center of Karauli District, a ...

. His elder brother, Munir Khan, was a well-known

player. He was first taught sarangi and vocal music. His initial

Tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

training was under Ustad Hidayat Khan. He also learned from the late Ustad Inam Ali Khan of the

Delhi gharana The Delhi or Dilli Gharana, is a tabla traditional playing style, "regarded by many as the fountainhead of all the tabla gharanas" and known for being the first and oldest gharana playing style of tabla. It also is one of the six most common sty ...

. Ustad Faiyaz Khan also studied south Indian rhythms from a master of the barrel drum

mridangam The ''mridangam'' is an ancient percussion instrument originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is the primary rhythmic accompaniment in a Carnatic music ensemble. In Dhrupad, a modified version, the pakhawaj, is the primary percussion in ...

, Ramnad Ishwaran. He began his career as a staff artist of

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

Jaipur Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...

in 1955. In 1958, he moved to

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

to join

there. He retired from regular radio service in 1993. Ustad Faiyaz Khan regularly accompanied many great stalwarts and frequently performed as a soloist as well. He also travelled the world extensively, from giving performances at the festival of

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

to a solo recital at

Queen Elizabeth Hall The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts European classical music, classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1971, and numerous performances in Australia, the United States and Europe.Ustad Faiyyaz KHAN, Tabla player
wardhan.com website, Retrieved 4 January 2022 Faiyaz Khan had the rare opportunity of accompanying three generations of well-known musicians: from the great masters of yesteryear, such as Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Amir Khan, Hafiz Ali Khan, Begum Akhtar, Gangubai Hangal, Pannalal Ghosh, Siddheshwari Devi,

Mallikarjun Mansur Pandit Mallikarjun Bheemaraayappa Mansur, (31 December 1910 12 September 1992) was a Hindustani classical singer from Karnataka. He sang in the khyal genre and belonged to the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana. Early life and background Mallikarjun was ...

, Abdul Rashid Khan, the generation of artists like Pandit Ravi Shankar,

Ali Akbar Khan Ali Akbar Khan (14 April 192218 June 2009) was an Indian Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Trained as a classical musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, ...

, Nikhil Banerjee,

Kishori Amonkar Kishori Amonkar (10 April 1932 – 3 April 2017) was an Hindustani classical music, Indian classical vocalist, belonging to the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana, Jaipur Gharana, or a community of musicians sharing a distinctive musical style. She is cons ...

Vilayat Khan Ustad Vilayat Khan (28 August 1928 – 13 March 2004) was an Indian classical sitar player, considered by many to be the greatest sitarist of his age. Along with Imdad Khan, Enayat Khan, and Imrat Khan, he is credited with the creation a ...

, Sharan Rani, Parween Sultana, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Debu Chaudhuri, Bhimsen Joshi, Pandit Jasraj, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Rajshekhar Mansur, Ajoy Chakraborty etc., to younger artists much his junior in age. He taught for a year in 1985 at the

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

and, since 1992, taught at the Rotterdam Conservatory regularly. Further regular teaching for a period of 20 years after his retirement took place at Gandharva Mahavidyalaya

, India. His disciples are his son, Rais Khan, his grandsons – and Gyan Singh, Shahbaz Hussain (UK), Udit Pankhania (UK), Heiko Dijker and Ted De Jong (Holland).

Death and legacy

He died on 12 November 2014 in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

, at the age of 80 due to meningitis. Among the survivors were two sons and five daughters.

Awards and recognition

*''Taal Samrat'' Award by the Ustad Ashique Ali Khan memorial society in 2010Bhajan Sopori and Faiyaz Khan honoured
Zee News website, Published 26 February 2010, Retrieved 4 January 2022

References

Khan, Faiyaz 2014 deaths Khan, Faiyaz Khan, Faiyaz Khan, Faiyaz Indian Muslims People from Sikar Indian percussionists Washington University in St. Louis faculty Academic staff of Codarts University for the Arts Farrukhabad gharana {{India-musician-stub