Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan and his two sons Amaan and Ayaan will perform at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert at Oslo on December 11 and spread the message of peace, harmony and non-violence with a special raga conceived for the occasion.
Each year, the Nobel Peace Prize Concert at Norway's capital gathers a host and selection of talented artists from around the world to pay tribute to the year's laureate.
Besides the Khans, Pakistani singer Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and UK's popular Bolly Flex Dancers will add a distinctly Indian and Pakistani flair to the concert at the Olso Spektrum in a tribute to the laureates Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafazi.
"It's a great honour for me and my sons to be given this opportunity at such a prestigious platform. We feel so proud to be celebrating an occasion of an Indian receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. That gives us all the more happiness," 69-year-old Amjad Ali Khan told PTI.
The Khans will be playing a special raga on the occasion.
"It is called 'raga for peace' and has flavours and colours of India. It stresses on the message of peace, harmony and non-violence," he said.
There will be a rehearsal on December 10 and the finale the next day. The concert will be hosted by Grammy-winning hip-hop star Queen Latifah and will also see performances by the likes of iconic songwriter-singer Steven Tyler, British soul singer Laura Mvula, the inspirational Girls of The World and Norway's Gabrielle. "Girls of the World" will play a musical tribute to Malala with the popular "I Am Malala" song, a video project that was initiated by songwriter and music producer Jon Ingoldsby in 2012.
The Khans and all the other musicians have been given a time slot of five minutes for their performances.
"We are thrilled to have these great artistes at this year's Nobel Peace Prize Concert," said Geir Lundestad, director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute.
"This year we will focus more than ever before on the Prize winners. The reason for the Concert is to honour them and we have two such eloquent winners with such dramatic stories to tell. We will showcase music from their home countries with a Bollywood celebration in addition to our major international stars Queen Latifah and Steven Tyler."
Executive producer Odd Arvid Stromstad noted that there is tremendous interest in this year's Prize winners which provides the opportunity to showcase some of the best artistes from Pakistan and India, in addition to a multi-talented host and artistes.
