CHICAGO (Diya TV) — Highly-touted jazz pianist and MacArthur Fellowship awardee Vijay Iyer has been tapped to perform alongside guitarist Fareed Haque at a special concert in September to raise funds for Chicago’s Indo-American Heritage Museum.
The Chicago-based institution honors the heritage and contributions of more than two million Indian Americans. Additionally, the event will mark the official opening of the museum’s Hall of Fame, Iyer will himself become the first inductee.
“This concert is a historic event for the Indian American community of Chicago,” event chair Amita Banerji said in a statement. “IAHM is the first institution in the country to engage with all communities to promote understanding, document the history, celebrate the heritage, preserve and share the contributions of Indian Americans to the building of America. Through the creation of a Hall of Fame we will honor Indian Americans whose achievements are particularly noteworthy.”
Born in raised in New York, Iyer is the son of Tamil Indian immigrants. He received his aforementioned MacArthur Fellowship in 2013, an honor handed out to those whom showcase “extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction.”
