Salar Nader is one of the most sought-after young percussionists of his generation. He was born in Hamburg, Germany, to Afghan parents forced to flee their home during the Russian-Afghan war. Nader was just five-years-old when his family settled in the San Francisco, Bay Area. At age seven, he began studying with the legendary tabla virtuoso Ustad Zakir Hussain. He began classical training early, first concentrating on the spoken rhythmic language of North Indian percussion, tabla bols. “It was like learning a new language,” he recalled. “I spoke Farsi at home, English outside, Tabla at night with my lesson book.” Since 2007 Nader has been an official Aga Khan Music initiative artist and tours frequently with several of AKMI’s projects which include, “Rainbow” featuring the world renowned Kronos Quartet, “In the Footsteps of Babur” Rahul Sharma, “The Art of Rubab and Tabla” with Homayoun Sakhi. While Nader is a regular performer at AKMI he is also a teacher, visiting schools worldwide for lecture demonstrations and teaching.