Fareed Ayaz, Abu Muhammad Qawwal & Brothers

Enjoy a rare opportunity to see this legendary Pakistani ensemble! They perform Qawwali, a form of devotional Sufi music that originated in ancient Islamic poetry.

edition 2023
Fareed Ayaz, Abu Muhammad Qawwal & Brothers
May 27 — 8:00pm
Oscar Peterson Concert Hall
Book

Description

Enjoy a rare opportunity to see this legendary Pakistani ensemble! They perform Qawwali, a form of devotional Sufi music that originated in ancient Islamic poetry.

Known as “the path of the heart,” Qawwali expresses the fervent devotion of the great Sufi mystics. The music begins by drawing the audience in with a meditative rhythm of chants, melodies, and percussion. Steadily, the rhythm builds, reaching ecstatic peaks to transport both musicians and listeners closer to the divine.

The ensemble’s musical roots go back 700 years in the tradition of Qawwal Bachon ka Gharana of Delhi. Lead singers, Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad, accompanied by their chorus singers and percussionists, weave together devotional and secular traditions for a transcendent evening of music.

Médias

Biographies

Fareed Ayaz

Fareed Ayaz, also known as Ghulam Fariduddin Ayaz Al-Hussaini Qawwal is a Pakistani Sufi devotional singer. He belongs to the Qawwal Bachchon Ka Gharana of Delhi. He and his relatives are the flag-bearers of the Gharana school of music, also known by the city name Delhi Gharana. He performs various genres of Hindustani classical music, such as dhrupad, khayal, tarana, thumri, and dadra. Ayaz leads the qawwal ensemble with his younger brother, Abu Muhammad, along with other family members. 

Fareed Ayaz was born in Hyderabad, India, but moved to Karachi Pakistan due to the partition of India and the birth of Pakistan. He started training in classical music with his father, Munshi Raziuddin Ahmed Khan Qawwal. Their roots can be traced to the family tree of one of the earliest disciples of Amir Khusroan, an Indian Sufi singer, musician, poet, and scholar who lived during the period of the Delhi Sultanate (1215 to 1395 AD). Early in his career, Munshi Raziuddin Ahmed Khan Qawwal used to sing with his cousins Qawwal Bahauddin Khan and Manzoor Niazi Qawwal (also a maternal uncle of Fareed). 

Fareed Ayaz & Abu Muhammad Qawwal Brothers are the most popular Qawwal ensemble in Pakistan, one of the very few left. They have performed internationally and are sought after as the most popular Sufi singers since the passing of the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

With

Fareed Ayaz – Performer and Singer

 

edition 2023
Fareed Ayaz, Abu Muhammad Qawwal & Brothers
May 27 — 8:00pm
Oscar Peterson Concert Hall
Book
in collaboration