Pakistani polio-survivor to play sarangi in Washington

The event is scheduled to be held on December 3, where he will perform at the prestigious Kennedy Centre.

Young Pakistani sarangi player Zohaib Hassan has been invited to perform at an evening of classical Indian and Pakistani music at Kennedy Center, Washington DC on December 3.

A 2013 VSA International Young Soloist winner, Hassan hails from a family of musicians of the Amritsar gharana. At 25, Zohaib has already established himself as the one of the leading sarangi players in the Pakistan.

#Pakistani sarangi player Zohaib Hassan, a 2013 VSA Int/l Young Soloist winner to perform at @KenCen, Dec3 6pm. http://t.co/e5iRbj8Ggz

— Pakistan Embassy US (@PakinUSA) November 26, 2013

Hassan will be performing alongside Abhik Mukherjee, a world-renowned sitarist, vocalist, and composer and will be flanked by Nabeel Riaz on tabla and Aftab Datta on tanpura at an event titled the "Evening of Raag".

The event will be presented in cooperation with VSA in honour of International Day of Persons with Disabilities.  


While many sarangi players only make use of the index, middle and ring finger to play the instrument, Hassan who suffered from Poliomyelitis when he was a child, also incorporates the smallest finger allowing him to play with a variety of note combinations.