Traditional Qaawwali Performances from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
September 10, 2006 3:39 PM Subscribe
Mezmerizing videos of Qawwali master Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan along with lyrics and translation. More performances at youtube: 1, 2, 3, 4.
kosem (your links, fixed):
Interview with Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley's Liner Notes
This is really interesting to listen too. Music that is very different is so much more enjoyable and accesible when its created by highly skilled and talented artist. Good find. Thanks
posted by Merik at 4:07 PM on September 10, 2006
Interview with Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley's Liner Notes
This is really interesting to listen too. Music that is very different is so much more enjoyable and accesible when its created by highly skilled and talented artist. Good find. Thanks
posted by Merik at 4:07 PM on September 10, 2006
Mesmerizing indeed. You do deserve a million thank yous.
posted by micayetoca at 4:11 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by micayetoca at 4:11 PM on September 10, 2006
"Qawwali is the devotional music of the Sufis. (Sufism is a mystic tradition of Islam.) Originally performed mainly at Sufi shrines throughout what is now India and Pakistan, it has also gained popularity in the mainstream, especially through the work of artistes like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Qawwali is a vibrant musical tradition that stretches back more than 700 years." from wikipedia.
posted by Merik at 4:15 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by Merik at 4:15 PM on September 10, 2006
Thanks for the fix Merik. Missed the messup on preview.
posted by kosem at 4:21 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by kosem at 4:21 PM on September 10, 2006
I think you mean Nusrat Fateh Ali Motherfucking Khan. Just as Bruce Lee should properly be referred to as Bruce Fucking Lee and Steve McQueen should properly be called Steve Fucking McQueen.
On account of the coolness.
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:26 PM on September 10, 2006
On account of the coolness.
posted by Astro Zombie at 4:26 PM on September 10, 2006
Afreen Afreen is indeed mesmerizing. Thanks.
posted by vaportrail at 4:28 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by vaportrail at 4:28 PM on September 10, 2006
About 14 years ago I had the chance to see Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan in concert in Seattle. It was one of those things where I thought I knew a little, but in fact really had no idea of just how much it would affect me. People in the audience (mostly Pakistanis and Indians) went wild -- dancing in the aisles and riding on each others' shoulders. I left floating on air. Masti Masti!
posted by Surfurrus at 4:33 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by Surfurrus at 4:33 PM on September 10, 2006
from kosem's interview link (which is just great):
JB: You once had a dream that is now very famous. Can you describe it to me?
NFAK: My father [the Qawwali singer Ustad Fateh Ali Khan] died in 1964, and ten days later, I dreamed that he came to me and asked me to sing. I said I could not, but he told me to try. He touched my throat, I started to sing, and then I woke up singing. I had dreamed that my first live performance would be at my father’s chilla [funeral ceremony], where we would all sit together again and read prayers from the Koran and so on. On the fortieth day after his death, we held the ceremony, and I performed for the very first time.
posted by Merik at 4:34 PM on September 10, 2006
JB: You once had a dream that is now very famous. Can you describe it to me?
NFAK: My father [the Qawwali singer Ustad Fateh Ali Khan] died in 1964, and ten days later, I dreamed that he came to me and asked me to sing. I said I could not, but he told me to try. He touched my throat, I started to sing, and then I woke up singing. I had dreamed that my first live performance would be at my father’s chilla [funeral ceremony], where we would all sit together again and read prayers from the Koran and so on. On the fortieth day after his death, we held the ceremony, and I performed for the very first time.
posted by Merik at 4:34 PM on September 10, 2006
Very nice -- thanks!
posted by languagehat at 5:21 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by languagehat at 5:21 PM on September 10, 2006
Nusrat totally rules. Amazing, amazing singer. Never looked him up on the net, though, so thanks so much for this post. Seeing him sing is a real treat.
Years back, in NYC, whenever I'd happen to get into a cab with a Pakistani driver, I'd mention Nusrat, and of course they'd always know about him and speak reverently about his great artistry.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:04 PM on September 10, 2006
Years back, in NYC, whenever I'd happen to get into a cab with a Pakistani driver, I'd mention Nusrat, and of course they'd always know about him and speak reverently about his great artistry.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:04 PM on September 10, 2006
I really love his music. Here's another great song at Youtube:
Dam Mast Qalandar Mast Mast
posted by mike3k at 6:18 PM on September 10, 2006
Dam Mast Qalandar Mast Mast
posted by mike3k at 6:18 PM on September 10, 2006
Many thanks, kosem. Mesmerising! Unfortunately I didn't get to see him perform, but I did see some qaawwali in Kashmir, many years ago.
posted by carter at 6:25 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by carter at 6:25 PM on September 10, 2006
wow
posted by pyramid termite at 6:31 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by pyramid termite at 6:31 PM on September 10, 2006
I saw Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan many years ago and I was actually a little disappointed -- not with the man's voice itself, which was astonishing, but the band (which was mainly his kids) was fairly generic.
I'm a big fan of music from the Indian sub-continent and have seen, heck, probably hundreds of concerts of masters including Zakir Hussain, Ustad Ali Akhbar Khan, Ravi Shankar, and I prefer to see shows where there are at least two strong personalities involved so they can play off against each other -- no matter how good the individual master is, one voice gets dull after an hour.
There were two amazing parts of the show, however. The first was that a few minutes after the start of the show, his manager came to the front of the audience and threw money at him, and then the rest of the show, audience members were constantly throwing money onto the stage. Why don't my audiences do this?
The second part was the physical mass of NFAK -- he was almost unable to walk and had to be helped onto the stage by two of his sons but as he sang, he was transported by the music and would rise up out of the cross-legged position in which he sat.
posted by lupus_yonderboy at 7:12 PM on September 10, 2006
I'm a big fan of music from the Indian sub-continent and have seen, heck, probably hundreds of concerts of masters including Zakir Hussain, Ustad Ali Akhbar Khan, Ravi Shankar, and I prefer to see shows where there are at least two strong personalities involved so they can play off against each other -- no matter how good the individual master is, one voice gets dull after an hour.
There were two amazing parts of the show, however. The first was that a few minutes after the start of the show, his manager came to the front of the audience and threw money at him, and then the rest of the show, audience members were constantly throwing money onto the stage. Why don't my audiences do this?
The second part was the physical mass of NFAK -- he was almost unable to walk and had to be helped onto the stage by two of his sons but as he sang, he was transported by the music and would rise up out of the cross-legged position in which he sat.
posted by lupus_yonderboy at 7:12 PM on September 10, 2006
I think you mean Nusrat Fateh Ali Motherfucking Khan. Just as Bruce Lee should properly be referred to as Bruce Fucking Lee and Steve McQueen should properly be called Steve Fucking McQueen.
On account of the coolness.
posted by Astro Zombie at 7:26 PM EST on September 10
I am gonna have to go with Astro Zombie on this one
posted by msali at 7:29 PM on September 10, 2006
On account of the coolness.
posted by Astro Zombie at 7:26 PM EST on September 10
I am gonna have to go with Astro Zombie on this one
posted by msali at 7:29 PM on September 10, 2006
Great post! Thank you!
posted by jason's_planet at 7:43 PM on September 10, 2006
posted by jason's_planet at 7:43 PM on September 10, 2006
My favourites are his duets with AR Rahman [sue me, I love the indopop] for the album ' Vande Mataram'.
posted by infini at 1:38 AM on September 11, 2006
posted by infini at 1:38 AM on September 11, 2006
Wow. Thanks for this. He was amazing. One can see an early live performance of NFAK -- in Pakistan -- in the fine film I Am a Sufi, I Am A Muslim. It might be my favorite film clip of NFAK. I saw him sing live once, too, and it blew me away. Without a doubt he was one of the greatest singers of the modern era.
posted by fourcheesemac at 6:56 AM on September 11, 2006
posted by fourcheesemac at 6:56 AM on September 11, 2006
I had a chance to meet him a few years before he died. What struck me most was a "purity of spirit" - a complete lack of guile in a man who had just entranced a thousand people an hour before. He explained that his sole purpose was to uplift people and he succeeded beyond any rock star with his humble simplicity.
Great post - many thanks for this.
posted by RMALCOLM at 3:11 PM on September 11, 2006
Great post - many thanks for this.
posted by RMALCOLM at 3:11 PM on September 11, 2006
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Jeff Buckley's Liner Notes to The Supreme Collection
posted by kosem at 3:43 PM on September 10, 2006