RMIM Archive Article "395".
From the RMIM Article Archive maintained by Satish Subramanian
#
# RMIM Archives..
# Subject: Qawaali part 6
#
# Posted by: Satish Subramanian
# Source: Teginder Singh Dhanoa's paper in UC Davis
# Author: Teginder Singh Dhanoa ez054777@ucdavis.edu
#
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Qawwali - Devotional Songs of the Sufi Mystics
(Recording and Concerts)
by
Teginder Singh Dhanoa
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In the early part of this century, sound recordings of
Qawwalis were done in Bombay by the Gramophone Company of
India.(39) Many foreign based companies also captured this
art on record, such as the Berlin based Bumb & Kong who
supposedly recorded over 300 cuts of Qawwali. America was
first introduced to Qawwali in 1975 when The Asia Society
organized the tour of The Sabri Brother Qawwals of Pakistan.
They gave a second tour in 1978 to a sold out Carnegie Hall.
The United States was once again reunited with Qawwali in
1989 during the Academy of Music's next Wave Festival.(40)
In 1989 the United States was graced by, undoubtedly the
greatest Qawwal alive, Qawwal Ustad(41) Nusrat Fateh Ali
Khan. Khan-Sahib(42) hails from the illustrious Khan
lineage of Sufi Qawwals that dates back to the twelfth
century. He was born on 13 October, 1948 in Faisalabad,
Pakistan. His grandfather was the illustrious Ustad Maula
Baksh Ali Khan and his father was Ustad Fateh Ali Khan.
Khan Sahib's rise to fame in such a short time (approx. 1970
to the present)(43) is due to his intense devotion to the
music, his sophisticated style, and his unbelievable speed
in reciting Raags. He has worked with famous western
artists such as Peter Gabrielle and John Gabarack. He has
also performed a song on the Soundtrack for "The Last
Temptation of Christ", and has also worked with many artists
in England.(44) Khan-Sahib has given concerts all over the
world, including Japan, France, England and America (even as
close as U.C. Berkeley). Although he has made many modern
Qawwali tracks with the use of synthesizers and drums,
Khan-Sahib still follows the centuries-old performance
traditions when in concert.
It has been a custom for any Mehfil-e-Sama (concert of
listening) to begin with a Hamd, a song in the praise of
God, Allah. The next Qawwali is always a Naat-e-Kalaam, a
song in the praise of Mohammed (P.B.U.H). The third Qawwali
is always a Manqbat Ali, a song in the Praise of Hazrat Ali
Sahib(45), which is usually the Qawwali, "Mun Kunto
Maula."(46) After these first three obligatory Qawwalis have
been sung(47), the Qawwal is free to chose any Qawwali he
sees fit or is demanded by the audience(48). The program
usually proceeds with a Manqbat dedicated to a saint, where
Zikr of the saints name is repeated instead of "Allah".(49)
During many modern Qawwali concerts, Qawwals also sing
romantic songs, Ghazals, in the Qawwali style. The last
Qawwali in a Mehfil is always "Raang" (literally translates
as "Color"). It is a Qawwali in medieval Hindi, written and
composed by Hazrat Amir Khusrou that celebrates Sheikh
Khwaja Nizam-ud-Din Auliya accepting Hazrat Amir Khusrou as
his disciple.
From the times of Hazrat Amir Khusrou, the singing of the
first Qawwali in India to the present, Qawwali has not
changed much in either its performance or its effect.
Devotees still go to hear the texts of their Sufi saints
sung by Qawwals, and many throughout the world are
transported to the state of Wisal by the music of the
Qawwals. Whether a Qawwali is sung on the marble floors of
a mausoleum by a group of three Qawwals, by a group of ten
in the famous "Theater de la Vile" in Paris, or even on the
stage of "Zellerbach Auditorium" on the U.C. Berkeley
campus, Qawwals are truly, as Ken Hunt put it, "Jellaluddin
Rumi's(50) 'ecstatic singers in sacred taverns'."
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END NOTES
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(39)
Hunt, Pg. 5.
(40)
Browning, Pg. 1.
(41)
Ustad is a term of respect given to Muslim artists of the
highest caliber, literally means "Teacher". The Hindu
equivalent would be "Pandit", i.e. Pandit Ravi Shankar.
(42)
Also a title of respect.
(43)
Twenty-five years is a very short time when it comes to
achieving recognition as a good Qawwal.
(44)
Indo-British Disc Jockey and Remixer Bally Sagoo had the
following to say about Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan after
recording an album with him
"Nusrat's worldwide reputation as a professional was
something I had been aware of before meeting him but
one thing that is not generally known about him, was
the ability to lay each track in one take, sheer bril-
liance".
Sagoo, Bally. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Magic Touch (Mixes).
England : Oriental Star Agencies, 1993. CDSR030, compact
disc and accompanying pamphlet.
(45)
Hazrat Ali was the son-in-law of the Prophet (P.B.U.H) and
his cousin. He is considered to be the first Sufi.
(46)
The first two lines of the Qawwali translate as
"Whoever accepts me as Master
Ali too is his Master".
These lines are from the religious text The Hadith, the say-
ings of the Prophet himself (P.B.U.H) and a guide to life
based on his. The remainder of the Qawwali is written and
composed by Hazrat Amir Khusrou.
Qureshi, Regula Burckhardt. Sufi Music of India and Pakis-
tan : Sound, Context and Meaning in Qawwali. New York :
Cambridge University Press, 1986. Pg. 21.
(47)
This is the general procedure for most Qawwali Mehfils. In
some shrines, such as that of Sheikh Khwaja Nizam-ud-Din
Auliya, it is required that "Mun Kunto Maula" be the first
Qawwali sung. Ibid.
(48)
Mehfils at shrines have a slightly varying format, but I
will only cover the more mainstream concerts.
(49)
This practice stems from the importance of Sufi saints in
the origin of Islam in India, which is reflected by the pil-
grimages made to their shrines. The names of many saints
have been integrated in Qawwalis.
"Through the repetitive, hypnotic chanting of these
names the believer follows the saints along the
ecstatic path to heaven".
Khan, Shahen-Shah.
(50)
Hazrat Jellaluddin Rumi-Sahib (1207-1273) was a great mystic
poet born in Balkh, Afghanistan. His family was exiled from
Balkh by the approach of Genghis Khan's armies. They set-
tled in Konya, Turkey where his father, Hazrat Bahauddin
Veled became head of a Medrese (Dervish learning community).
Rumi-Sahib eventually succeeded his father. Rumi-Sahib is
acreddited as being the founder of the wherling Dervishes.
Rumi-Sahib's life completely changed when he met a mystic by
the name of Hazrat Shams of Tabriz. Hazrat Shams of Tabriz
was a wandering mystic who claimed to have had deep communi-
cation with God. Rumi-Sahib collected Hazrat Shams' works
into many volumes. Rumi-Sahib's works are also available in
numerous volumes.
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From the RMIM Article Archive maintained by Satish Subramanian