Fiyaz Khan

Ustad Faiyaz Khan (alternative spelling Fiyaz Khan) (1934 – 12 November 2014) was a tabla player of international repute and belonged to the Delhi Gharana.

Faiyaz Khan was born in 1934 at Sikar, Rajasthan, in a family of musicians. Nazir Khan, his father, was a sarangi and tabla player at the court of the Maharaja of Karauli. His elder brother, Munir Khan, was a well-known sarangi player. He was first taught sarangi and vocal music. His initial Tabla training was under Ustad Hidayat Khan. He also learned from the late Ustad Inam Ali Khan of the Delhi gharana of Tabla. Ustad Faiyaz Khan also studied south indian rhythms from a master of the barrel drum mridangam, Ramnad Ishwaran.

He began his career as a staff artist of All India Radio Jaipur in 1955. In 1958, he moved to Delhi to join All India Radio there. He retired from regular radio service in 1993.

He regularly accompanied many great stalwarts and frequently performed as a soloist as well. He also travelled the world extensively, from performances at the festival of Shiraz, Iran to a solo recital at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, and numerous performances in Australia, the United States and Europe.

Khan had the rare opportunity of accompanying three generations of 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, the generation of artists like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Ali Akbar Khan, Nikhil Banerjee, Vilayat Khan, Sharan Rani, Parween Sultana, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Bhimsen Joshi, Pandit Jasraj, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Ajoy Chakraborty etc., to younger artists much his junior in age.

He taught for a year in 1985 at the Washington University 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 Delhi, India.

He died on 12 November in New Delhi, at the age of 80.