Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and legendary guitarist Joe Walsh hope to heal with music

The three-song EP launched on June 4 pays tribute to doctors and frontline workers and also features a ‘Black Lives Matter’ prayer

Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his sons Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash in collaboration with legendary American guitarist and Grammy award winner Joe Walsh, mesmerise music lovers with a three-song EP launched on June 4. The project titled Prayers — East Meets West is a tribute to doctors and frontline workers worldwide, along with a prayer embracing ‘Black Lives Matter’. While celebrating the diversity of genres, their music heralds a message of love, unity, and peace, especially in these troubling times. Prior to the EP launch, the sarod maestro in an email interview shares details and why this project “guided by music’s unseen power” is special. “We didn’t have a plan but knew something profound would come out of this,” he says adding the proceeds from the EP’s sales will be donated to IntraHealth International to aid health workers. Joe (Joe Walsh) and I met in Mumbai in 2018 and were keen to do something together. During my US tours, we used to record in Joe’s beautiful studio in Los Angeles. Our two sessions, spread over a year, became my first musical partnership with the Rock and Roll world. It’s been an honour to collaborate with Joe who is a legendary figure. This project is a spiritually infused three-song EP, an offering for the widespread human suffering. We met again in Los Angeles and recorded these pieces before the lockdown in early 2020.