Q: Who are the main sitar players I should listen to?

A: There are many great sitar players in India and around the world. Most people consider three musicians, Ravi Shankar, Vilayat Khan and Nikhil Banerjee to be the pivotal sitarists of the last half of the 20th century. Sitar playing, like Indian classical music in general, is on old form, yet dynamic and always evolving. Each of these musicians in his own way was a strict traditionalist and an innovator. They represent the two main gharanas of sitar. Vilayat Khan was the foremost exponent of the Etawa or Imdadkhani gharana. Ravi Shankar and Nikhil Banerjee were students of Ustad Allaudin Khan of Maihar, and represent the Maihar Gharana. Ravi Shankar is still concertizing at the age of 87. Vilayat Khan died in 2004 at the age of 76. Nikhil Banerjee died a tragic early death in 1986, but left a legacy of recordings coveted by music lovers worldwide. Their students, followers and many talented other players too numerous to mention, continue in their footsteps.