The Aga Khan Music Awards today announce the full programme for the 2025 edition, presented in collaboration with the EFG London Jazz Festival across the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Purcell Room, and in the Ismaili Centre London from 20–23 November.
Over four days, London audiences will experience a musical journey spanning West Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, South Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean. The festival-style programme features musical conversations between centuries-old traditions and contemporary innovators, showcasing devotional qawwali and khayal; Gnawa music from Morocco; Turkish and Greek classical traditions; new sounds from the Middle East; and bold fusions with jazz and orchestral music.
Music Awards programming reflects the Awards’ mission to celebrate music that stands at the heart of human experience as a living force of creative imagination and cross-cultural dialogue. In doing so, it underscores London’s role as a crossroads for global culture.
Programme Details (20–23 November)
20 November – Tribute to Ustad Zakir Hussain
Triveni Quartet honours the tabla legend and 2022 AKMA Lifetime Achievement laureate. (Ismaili Centre, 1:00 pm & 9:00 pm)
Fazal Qureshi, tabla
Kala Ramnath, violin
Jayanthi Kumaresh, saraswati veena
Anantha R. Krishnan, mridangam
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/triveni-quartet-an-homage-to-zakir-hussain
21 November – Opening Night: Celebration of Music from the Great East
Aga Khan Master Musicians with Vincent Peirani; qawwali by the Warsi Brothers; qawwali & khayal by the Saami Brothers, featuring Ustad Naseeruddin Saami; Hamid El Kasri with Gnawa Kouyous; Karim Ziad; Michael League.
(Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, 7.30pm)
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/aga-khan-master-musicians-friends-a-night-of-musical-alchemy-and-wonder
22 November – Aga Khan Music Programme Freestage
An afternoon of free performances featuring students and graduates of the Aga Khan Music schools in Cairo and Kyrgyzstan, and talented artists from the global Ismaili community. Three showcases culminating in a joint performance celebrating the transformative power of music education.
(Southbank Centre’s Clore Ballroom, from 12:00 pm
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/aga-khan-music-programme-freestage
22 November – Aga Khan Music Awards Ceremony 2025
The centrepiece of the festival: a celebration of AKMA 2025 winners, with captivating live performances, specially-crafted animations, commissioned films, and remarkable new collaborations taking shape in real time.
(Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, 7.30pm)
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/aga-khan-music-awards-night
Saturday 22 November – Ghalia Benali
Ghalia Benali, a finalist for the 2025 Aga Khan Music Awards, blends musical traditions to create contemporary Arabic music at once deeply rooted and strikingly new. Her powerful voice and innovative sound have earned her global acclaim.
(Dingwalls, 7:45pm)
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/ghalia-benali
23 November – Soumik Datta
The composer and sarod virtuoso—himself an Aga Khan Music Awards 2022 winner —presents Travellers, a major new work for sarod, violin, tabla, mridangam, and percussion (Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room, 4.30pm)
Soumik Datta, sarod & composition
Sayee Rakshith, violin
Debjit Patitundi, tabla
Sumesh Narayanan, mridangam & percussion
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/soumik-datta
23 November – Oumou Sangaré with the BBC Concert Orchestra
Grammy-winning Malian singer and AKMA master jury member Oumou Sangaré performs with the BBC Concert Orchestra. The evening also features performances by 2025 laureates, creating a trans-continental finale that embodies the Awards’ spirit of music as a shared language across cultures.
(Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall 6.30pm)
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/oumou-sangare-with-the-bbc-concert-orchestra
Fairouz Nishanova, Director, Aga Khan Music Programme and Aga Khan Music Awards said:
“Music stands at the heart of human experience, inseparable from our stories and essential to the strength and cohesion of our communities. Through music, our stories breathe and our shared humanity endures. The Aga Khan Music Awards celebrate this transformative power of music – not only as an art form, but also as a means of fostering dialogue and understanding across cultures.”
Pelin Opçin, Director, EFG London Jazz Festival said:
“Following our long-time collaborations with the Aga Khan Music Programme, we are thrilled to host the Aga Khan Music Awards 2025, along with an expansive programme complementing the Awards within this year’s EFG London Jazz Festival. This partnership reinforces the Festival’s spirit of discovery and global connections. The Awards share our belief in music as a powerful force for creativity and cultural dialogue, and the programme offers an opportunity to witness exceptional performances and unique collaborations. AKMP and the Festival are proud to invite many master musicians to London stages and bring them together with the Festival audiences as part of our 2025 line-up.”
Tickets are available now at https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/agakhan. The winners of the Aga Khan Music Awards will be unveiled on Monday 3rd November.
