Alan Kushan
Alan Kushan is a virtuoso composer, singer, actor, and poet and master santur player.
Alan Kushan was born in Mahabad in Kurdestan (Iran) in 1960 and moved to Canada in 1988. He studied music and instrument-making in Zurich, Switzerland, and Cologne, Germany, and completed a Master of Music in Composition at Berlin University. He also studied with Yehudi Menuhin and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Kushan is a virtuoso composer, singer, actor, and poet and master santur player. His music blends traditional and contemporary techniques in an innovative and virtuosic style. Kushan has written for several combinations of instruments and soloists, and has recorded extensively. He is the recipient of many awards for his music, particularly for his music for theatre and film. Kushan also builds and restores a variety of world instruments. His desire to increase the range and technical opportunities for the santur resulted in a unique and more powerful instrument, capable of performing both traditional the most avant-garde repertoire. As a performer, Kushan has performed and collaborated with several internationally-recognized musicians such as Miles Davis, and Paco de Lucia.