Biography of Vilayat Hussain Khan

Born: 1895, Agra
Died: 1962, Delhi

Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan was an eminent musician of his time. He had inherited music as a legacy from his ancestors. He was born in 1892 in Agra. He was a singer of Agra Gharana.

Ustad Vilayat Hussain Khan's primary education in music was given by Ustad Mohammad Baksh Nauter. Later he learnt music from Ustad Kalaan Khan, Gulam Abbas Khan, Ustad Karamat Khan and his two elder brothers Ustad Mohammed Khan and Ustad Abdulla Khan.

There are very few singers in the history of music who can sing Dhrupad, Dhamar Khayal and Thumri with such fluency. He was a versatile singer and had the capability to sing four pat. His mastery over taal was unquestionable and he could sing most difficult and less popular with ease. For almost 40 years he dominated the music world and no part of India remained untouched from the songs of Hussain Khan. In 1955, he worked for a year in the Indian Centre and then moved to Bombay. He died on May 18, 1962.