Pandid Anindo Chatterjee:
Abbaji's contribution in the realm of percussion was endless. He introduced the Punjab style and his own style that he invented. You can hear Alla Rakha's playing for a few seconds and knwot that it's him. So he has introduced his own style and it is completely different from all others. You cannot avoid his character of playing. All tabla players use elements of his because he discovered all kinds of possibilities in the playing, in the system and techniques and fingerings.
I had a great opportunity to meet him. It is unfortunate, I feel so sad for the memory of Abbaji because I didn't expect his so sudden death. I had a great opportunity to come and play in Bombay and Abbaji was sitting in front of me in the audience and he blessed me. So many concerts. And he invited me for lunch, for biriyani, and he would say to me, "Anindo, you must play this kayada this way and in this way you can do the variation." He had so much influence. Any tabla player is influenced by him and I play many things of him in my concerts.
From childhood we were listening to him. He is especially amazing with the syahi playing of te-te with two fingers. He is the master of this, and of Punjab's chakradar (sets of three tihai or triplet phrases ending on a sam beat) And the way he presented his style, it is amazingly different from any other. He introduced a style that is his own style. His playing character you can see is Punjab style, so many intricate and difficult Pakhawaj-based bols. And the way he introduced those things into the tabla is really history.
He is my guru, everybody's guru, anyone who knows or plays tabla. So I am proud to be here. Zakir invited me to play. And I miss Abbaji. Whenever I would play in Bombay Abbaji was there and blessed me. So it is a lifetime experience to be here and to play with Abbaji's character of playing.
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