Amjad Ali Khan's Royal Festival Hall concert earns five stars from The Live Review

Amjad Ali Khan's concert at London's Royal Festival Hall on 27 January 2025 drew one of the most glowing notices his live work has received. Writing for The Live Review, critic Emma Carney awarded the evening five stars, and this piece looks back at what she responded to and why her verdict stands out.

The show centred on Khan's sarod playing, with his sons and the tabla player Tanmoy Bose sharing the stage with him. Carney's review focused less on individual virtuosity than on the way the group worked as one ensemble. She came away impressed by the ease and understanding passing between the musicians, and for a critic, that kind of rapport is hard to fake. It became the thread running through her account, shaping how she heard each passage of the evening.

The clearest highlight in her eyes was the Samaagam Concerto for Sarod, which she described as having stolen the show. Without offering a blow-by-blow account, she suggested that this piece drew together the strengths of the whole evening: the lyrical pull of the sarod, the rhythmic conversation with the tabla, and the sense that the players were listening closely to one another throughout. It was the moment she singled out as the peak of the programme, and the one she seemed most eager to praise.

Beyond the individual pieces, Carney described the evening as moving and unforgettable. Her language points to an emotional response as much as a technical one, and she framed the concert as something that stayed with her after the final note. A five-star verdict signals a critic who felt the performance had justified its place on the bill, and her enthusiasm was not reserved for a single section of the programme.

For readers who know Khan mainly through his recordings, the review offers a useful picture of how his music works in a live room. It suggests that the family ensemble and the dialogue with Bose are central to the experience rather than decorative extras, and that the intimacy of a close, attentive group can carry a large hall. Carney's notice is a reminder of why the sarod, heard in this setting, still commands such strong admiration, and why this particular concert earned its place among the most praised reviews of his live performances.