Indian Classical Music—Nishat Khan, sitar, and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Sitar maestro Nishat Khan returns to UC Santa Cruz with tabla maestro Nitin Mitta in an Indian classical music concert.
Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation for his unique and inspiring work, Khan’s masterful collaborations truly connect music globally. With the strike of a single, unmistakable note, the sound of Khan’s sitar instantly captivates and transforms one’s mood. Listeners are transported to another realm by a sight and sound unlike any other. As a torchbearer of the most recorded musical family in the world, the Imdad Khani Gharana, seven generations of wisdom reside in his fingertips. While grounded in centuries of tradition, Khan forges his own signature sound with a refreshing twist: familiar yet challenging, unfolding with emotional contrasts and surprises at every turn.
Touring and performing throughout the world since age 13, Nishat Khan’s unique cosmopolitan perspective has inspired a great sensitivity and connection to the cultures of music of the world. He gave his first public concert at age 7, and was the youngest performer on an All India Radio national programme at age 15. In more recent years, Khan created history in summer 2025 by composing and creating the first ever traditional (Western) opera from the Indian subcontinent, the Taj Mahal Opera. The opera had its premiere at the Grange Park Opera in the UK to sold-out performances and wide critical acclaim. His recent performances in 2026 include a sold-out concert at the Freight in Berkeley, California.
The press calls Khan: “Profound and electrifying…pure exhilaration, taking tradition as a blueprint for ecstasy” (The New York Times); “Etherial, compelling, sensual, Nishat Khan master of the sitar” (Los Angeles Times); “Freewheeling virtuosity inflected with infinite imaginative variety” (BBC Proms, The Guardian); and “Ferociously gifted…no conceivable limitations…his sitar roars, cries, and exults” (Times of India).
Nitin Mitta is regarded as one of the most sought after tabla players in the music world and has quickly established a reputation as an artist with a rare combination of technical virtuosity, spontaneity, clarity of tone, and sensitivity to melodic nuance. He is an acclaimed accompanist who has performed with some of India’s most celebrated musicians including Pandit Jasraj, Pandits Rajan and Sajan Mishra, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Ustad Nishat Khan, Ustad Shahid Parvez and Pandit Nayan Ghosh. He has also made a mark as a versatile musician in other spheres, his most recent collaboration with 2010 Grammy Award-nominee Vijay Iyer and guitarist Prasanna on their new album, Tirtha.
More information about the artists here on Instagram and YouTube and on nitinmitta.com.
This concert is funded by the Kamil and Talat Hasan Endowed Chair for Classical Indian Music and by the Ali Akbar Khan Endowment for Classical Indian Music.
- Attend in person at the Music Center Recital Hall at UC Santa Cruz.
- Accessibility and visitor resources available here online.
- General admission ticket prices and information to be announced.
- Free for UCSC students (ticket required).
- Tickets available through Eventbrite only.
- Follow the Music Dept on Eventbrite for notices and updates.
- Doors are scheduled to open 30 minutes prior to event start time.
ADVISORIES
- Ticket holders not seated at least 5 minutes before the advertised start time may forfeit their ticket/seat and no refund will be issued.
- The presentation is estimated at 2+ hours.
- There is no intermission scheduled for this event.
- For more information, contact the event organizer directly or email artsevents@ucsc.edu.
PARKING
- Arts Lot #126 is the closest parking lot to the event.
- Parking prices and instructions to be announced.
- Learn more about parking at UCSC via Transportation & Parking Services (TAPS).
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.