ON APPRECIATING AND PARTICIPATING IN RAAG MUSIC
by Dr. Hassan Azad

The classical music of India and Pakistan is one of the two systems of music which enjoy worldwide appreciation. The following lines are written for someone who knows the basics of Western music and is keen to widen his-or hers- horizons. A genuine appreciation can only come from extensive exposure to this music, for then one learns to sift the exceptional from the ordinary and to appreciate the heights to which the human spirit can rise.

Like all arts, the classical music of Indo-Pak derives its inspiration from folk elements. A composer of art music has the same relation to folk music as a poet has to everyday language. Through centuries of cumulative work, these simple folk melodies have been transformed by men of genius into what are called Raags or Ragas. In contrast to the Western tradition, these composers have chosen to remain anonymous, for apparently religious reasons. A Raag then is a melodic structure which is based on inter-related themes; these themes have been transmitted from generation to generation orally. The dynamic lies in developing these fixed patterns and rejecting those which have become banal over the years. A practitioner of Raag music is therefore at once a composer and a performer - a tall order to which very few measure up. For this reason it is fair to say that the average performance of Raag music is devoid of transcendental elements. However, in the hands of a master-musician , the development has elements of great beauty and excitement and one becomes oblivious of the passage of time.An hour long performance of a single Raag is not un-usual. A Raag performance does not follow the pattern of a fast-slow-fast movement. It starts with an extensive arrhythmic development, called the Alaap, which is arguably the most artistic and demanding part of the performance. It gradually merges into a more rhythmic structure and what the performance lacks in counterpoint is made up by complex cross-rhythms(Lai-Kari) and alliterations, called Taans, of great beauty and technical complexity. In contrast to a performance of Chamber music, appreciation in the form of a nod, a word or a sigh of ecstasy is expected from the audience and if this is expressed where the musician expects, it serves as a spring board for more improvisation and a source of inspiration. Because of this difference in etiquette, the usual performance in the West of Raag music is rather insipid. However, if you express your appreciation openly you will begin to see the atmosphere changing and you will get from this something close to a religious experience. One final word: a connoisseur of this music does not tire of listening to the same Raags again and again. The reason is that the personality and mood of the artist changes the performance very substantially and, in any case, the pleasure one gets in hearing a familiar Raag is akin to the pleasure one gets in meeting and conversing with a good friend.

Dr. Azad is a Professor of Mathematics, a musicologist and a sitar player. The legendary sitar maestro Ustad Mohammad Sharif Khan Poonchwaley, was his teacher. Dr. Azad is the author of "A Compendium of Taans" used by professional sitar players.

QAWWALI IS THE DEVOTIONAL MUSIC OF SUFI MUSLIMS. Soaring vocal improvisations, incantatory refrains, steady hand clapping and surges of tabla playing characterize the performance of Muslim Sufi devotional songs called Qawwali. It is derived from the Arabic word "qual" or saying. An ensemble of 9 to 12 members sing from the Sufi text of devotional poetry extolling spiritual ecstasy.

The texts deal with divine love (ishq) the sorrow of separation (hijr or firaq) and the union (visal). These powerful concepts expressed symbolically in the Sufi poetry transcend all barriers and account for Qawwali music's inclusiveness and universal appeal. The repertoire consists of verses in Urdu and Persian, with some very
powerful and moving poetry in Seraiki, Punjabi and Hindi. However, over the centuries as Urdu became the lingua franca of most of South Asia, it also became the main language of Sufi poetry.

The music gives the spiritual essence of this poetry an expressive form that Sufis use to attain trance and mystical experience.

Originating in the 10th century and drawing from Arabic, Persian and South Asian languages and musical influences, Qawwali blossomed in its present form in the 13th century. Amir Khusrau (1254-1325), the poet, composer, mystic and the court musician at Delhi, is revered as the originator of qawwali.

NEW YORK TIMES MUSIC REVIEW
November 3, 2000, Friday
By JON PARELES

"Sufi Passion That Rises To Ecstasy"

Farid Ayaz Qawwal & Brothers

"Poetry is at the core of the Sufi devotional songs called qawwali. The words praise saints, yearn for a beloved (who may be human or divine) and extol spiritual ecstasy. At the same time, the music propels listeners toward that ecstasy with steady handclapping, incantatory refrains, surges of drumming and soaring vocal improvisations. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the singer who introduced many Westerners to qawwali before his death in 1997, mesmerized audiences with long, spectacular stretches of nonverbal vocalizing. Farid Ayaz Qawwal and Brothers, a nine-member group that made its United States debut in a World Music Institute concert at Symphony Space on Saturday night, stayed closer to the poetry while their songs reached crest after crest.

The group's mentor is Munshi Raziuddin, now in his 90's, whose family has sung qawwali for eight centuries. His sons Farid Ayaz and Abu Mohammed sat by his side, playing harmoniums and trading vocals and keyboard lines; the drumming came from Ali Akbar on tabla and Ghayoor Ahmed on dholak, which is played with both hands and sticks. Other members clapped hands and sang the refrains that spur each song. In traditional style, the songs began with drones and free-floating improvisations, with the melody slowly emerging amid filigreed harmonium lines. Over steady hand clapping, Mr. Ayaz intoned the couplets of poetry, then sang them with growing fervor. Sweetly restrained, smoothly curling phrases built up to percussive flurries of notes, each one hit with a quivering intensity; Mr. Ayaz's gentle tone grew rougher, more eager, while he played harmonium lines parallel to his vocals or stabbed a finger upward like a preacher. Mr. Mohammed picked up where Mr. Ayaz paused, creating his own ascending arcs. Though their father spent most of the concert singing along on responses, he also had a few solo passages, revealing a precise but weathered voice. The music gathered momentum again and again, with multiplying drumbeats and sharp attacks on the dholak. But the group refused to let the music lose itself in wordless euphoria. After each volley of vocal fireworks, Mr. Ayaz eased down the group and recited the next couplet, offering another lesson to be transformed by music." Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company

A COST EFFECTIVE WAY OF BRINGING REAL PAKISTAN TO NORTH AMERICA
by Ishrat Ansari

What is the real Pakistan?

A young country with an ancient civilization, Pakistan has a remarkable cultural heritage.

The humane features of our inheritance expressed so vividly in our art, music, literature and architecture provide the very foundation of a tolerant society. The ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity in Pakistan creates a rich cultural mosaic.

Why do people in North America know so little about this real Pakistan?

We have failed to bring out to the American people, in a professional and consistent manner, the defining elements of our culture: Pakistan's art literature and music.

Why?

In September this year, Chief Executive General Musharraf, during a meeting with Pakistanis in New York, had said that we were brilliant as individuals but our egos prevented us from working together as a team. This is also true in the area of cultural activities.

We must break the mold and learn to let the professionals do the job.

Plan for action.

One of the most cost-effective ways to have a real impact is to present, on one platform, Pakistani artists of real stature and international standing.

What the artist can do for a few dollars - winning the hearts and minds of the American people - is immeasurable.

The selection process:

What criteria do we use when inviting an artist?

Our main criterion is whether or not the work is accessible to the Western sensibility. Fortunately, there are Pakistani writers, painters and musicians, who have made a name for themselves in the West on their own merit. Now, it is our job to create a link between them and Pakistan in the minds of the American people.

To bring artists, who are talented but not as yet established here, we regularly pass on our recommendations to those cultural organizations that value our suggestions, such as Asia Society and World Music Institute. Abida Parveen and Ashraf Sharif Poonchwala are two such examples.

In 1999, we collaborated with World Music Institute to introduce a young sitar player Ashraf Shareef Khan Poonchwala. His stunning performance at Symphony Space, New York, before an audience of over 600, was the first time ever in 50 years that a classical musician from Pakistan performed in New York. His entire tour was financed by Rauf Ansari Foundation - a not for profit organization.

Late in 1999, the name of Rauf Ansari Foundation, a family foundation, was changed to Virsa Pakistan to make it more representative and broad based.

In 2,000 we have, so far, done the following under Virsa Pakistan Inc:

a) A sneak preview of our under production opera "Heer Ranjha". Waris Shah's Heer was sung in original Punjabi so movingly by an American soprano that it brought tears in the eyes of those present. The occasion was the farewell party for Abbas Haider Zaidi at Caffe Vivaldi. The well-known American composer, Carson Kievman, is writing the music for the opera.

b) Launched Fareed Ayaz Qawwals to rave reviews, including one by Jon Pareles the Music Critic for the New York Times.

c) Staged two performances, one each in Washington DC and New York, by the legendary sitar maestro Khan Sahib Ustad Rais Khan.

d) The first New York performance of our famous TV singer Bilqees Khanum of "Anokha Ladla" fame.

e) Reading by our young novelist Mohsin Hamid at Caffe Vivaldi. Mohsin Hamid"s first novel, "Moth Smoke" was on the New Times best sellers list.

f) Designed the coffee table art book, "Paintings of Pakistani Masters in American Homes". The artwork of the book is ready. After the text is finalized, and the expected funding received, we will go into printing. Phillip Shung, a very talented young American, is the art director. Sebastain Piras, a well-known Italian photographer, shot transparencies.

For the 2001-2002 please go to our Calendar of Events