The book- ‘50 Maestros 50 Recordings’ is an invaluable guide to the best of Indian classical music and will be released on the 21st of December, by Mr. Shashi Tharoor, Union Minister of State for External Affairs. To mark the occasion, the Khan Brothers will present a brief recital as a tribute to 50 music maestros.

Last week, Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan were honored to present the first copy of the book to the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in the presence of their father, Sitar Maestro, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan.

Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan represent the seventh generation of the ‘Senia Bangash’ School of music. They have performed at concerts and festivals around the world and have crossed the bridge between pure classical and western fusion with their electronica and lounge albums.

In this tribute to the masters of Indian classical music, they take us through their encounters with fifty of the greatest musicians of the past hundred years- from Begum Akhtar to Bhimsen Joshi, Enayat Khan to Ravi Shankar, Bismillah Khan to Shiv Kumar Sharma, Semmangudi Iyer to M.S. Subbulakshmi.

Ranging from the traditional gharanas to the more recent blends and fusions, instrumental and vocal, they explore the world of both northern and southern Indian music, along with a unique listing of each artiste’s most influential recording.

Enriched with personal anecdotes and interspersed with rare photographs from the authors’ private collection, the book is a keepsake for the connoisseur and a comprehensive introduction for the beginner, an excellent guide to a musical journey for any music lover.

-Sampurn Media