Ali-Akbar Shahnazi, the oldest son of the most influential and legendary tar player Mirza Hosseingholi, was born in Tehran 1897.

He begann in the early years learning tar from his father. Some People believe he was seven. His primary education consisted six years. After this education he reached the level that he was able to teach some of his father's students.

His father Jenab-e Mirza told him: “Practice a little, in some days you should make a recording with Jenab-e Damavandi.” The fourteen years old Ali-Akbar accompanied Jenab-e Damavandi, who is one of the most famous singers of Qajar era.

Some of these records are as below:

G.C.-14-12685
Tar: Ali-Akbar Shahnazi
Vocal: Jenab-e Damavandi, mode: Afshari

The demise of his father at the age of 18 made him responsible of his father's class and he started teaching them.

He established 1929 his own music school and taught his students his father's repertoire radif-e Mirza Hosseingholi and also his own repertoire radif-e-doreye-ali too, which means master course repertoire.
 
Shahnazi recorded many Gramophone 78 rpm discs with the great vocalists of his time such as Abolhassan Khan Eghbal, Nakisa and many other musicians, collaborated with other great master of his time such as Reza Mahjubi (violinist) and Hossein Tehrani.

Ostad Shahnazi recorded the radif of his father in 1962 and his own radif in 1977.

The late Ostad passed away in 1986 at the age of 88.

Tar: Ostad Ali-Akbar Shahnazi
Vocal: Abol-Hassan Khan Eghbal
Mode: Dastgah Mahur