Hidayat Khan, sitar player in Melodic Intersect

Hidayat Khan: Sitar Maestro of Melodic Intersect

Hidayat Khan is a renowned sitar player and a core member of Melodic Intersect, a world fusion ensemble. As a sitar maestro and seventh-generation sitarist, he brings the depth of Indian classical music to the band’s innovative sound.

A Lineage of Legends

Born in 1975, Hidayat is seventh in an unbroken line of sitar players. He is the son of the legendary Ustad Vilayat Khan and the grandson of the great Inayat Khan. His great-grandfather, Imdad Khan, co-developed the surbahar (bass sitar). The family is the only musical lineage to have recorded music across four generations. [reference:0]

Training & The Vocal Style

Hidayat began formal vocal training at age four and switched to sitar at fifteen. This unique path gave him an edge, allowing him to produce “gayaki” (vocal) style on the sitar. “My thinking is that of a vocalist,” he explains. His education at the feet of his father, together with prolonged riyaaz, shaped his distinctive approach. [reference:1]

Career Highlights & Global Recognition

Hidayat gave his first public performance at age nine and embarked on his first solo European tour by eighteen. He has performed at the Black Ball Charity in NYC with Alicia Keys and collaborated with Ndugu Chancler, Ronnie Woods, Usher, Pete Townshend, Will.I.Am, Jay Z, and Darryl Jones. [reference:2] He has also composed for Indian films, including Mira Nair’s Kama Sutra. [reference:3]

His debut solo fusion album, Ziver, was voted “One of the best world music albums of the year” by MTV music charts. [reference:4]

World Fusion & Melodic Intersect

As the sitar maestro of Melodic Intersect, Hidayat has been instrumental in the band’s recognition, with their group album included in the Grammy ballot for Best World Music Album since 2016. [reference:5] The ensemble has performed sold-out concerts at the IndoJazz festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center, with The NYC Jazz World calling them “the most eclectic act.” [reference:6]

Connect & Listen

🎵 Melodic Intersect

🎸 Hidayat Khan (Personal)