Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan -- The King of Qawwali

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, was a legend in the true sense. With his music and voice he touched the hearts of millions all over the world. Our musical ambassador, who put Pakistani qawwali on the international map. Born in Faisalabad, Pakistan in 1948 in a family where qawwali was sang for hundreds of years. Khan was immersed in qawwali, the devotional music of the Sufis (a mystical tradition within Islam) at an early age, however his first public performance was at his father's funeral. "The sound of love opens doors. The inner devotion of his heart has opened the doors of his own development from a small child in Pakistan deemed too soft in fortitude to carry on the family mantel of their qawwali tradition, to an immovable master of the art of song." (Jeff Buckley 1996)

Khan sang qawwali, traditional music of Islamic sufism, mostly in Punjabi and Urdu over the backdrop of beautiful tabla and harmonium music. His songs were heard not only in Pakistan but infact all over the world.

He did colloborative work with Peter Gabriel in 1985 for 'The Last Temptation of Christ'. His work with musician and producer Michael Brook, 'Mustt Mustt' and 'Night Song' introduced him to the western world. He also provided amazing soundtrack 'Taboo' for movie 'Natural Born Killers' (1994) with Peter Gabriel and soundtrack 'The face of Love' for  'Dead man walking' (1996) with Eddi Vedder. He also provided vocals for 'The Prayer Cycle' by Elias Jonathan but his work was not finished because of his untimely death and this was later completed by Alanis Morissette. Khan has provided songs to many local Pakistani and also Bollywood movies.

In 90ies his song 'Dum Mastt Qalandar' remixed by Massive Attack became a huge club hit in the UK. 'Intoxicated Spirit' was nominated for Grammy Award for best traditional folk album in 1997. Also listed as the world's 50 most influential music artists by Spin magazine in 1998 and top twelve in the '60 Years of Asian Heroes' by Time magazine in 2006. As per Guinness Book of World Records, Khan hold the world record for the largest recorded output by a qawwali artist.

Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, had a unique voice which induced ecstacy even in non-muslims. He could sing for hours at a stretch and would leave you mesmerized. Once you start listening to his music there is no turning back. 'Tere ankhon main aisa jado hai ke qadam larkhanay lage'... his voice carries you on a high only true lovers and devotees can feel. His songs are stunningly beautiful, painful yet fulfilling. Through his voice you can feel there is God, there is love, there is hope!

A visionary artist, affectionately known as 'Khan Sahib' left a permanent mark and paved the way for musicians and spiritual world. He represented possibilites, rendered a vision and beauty in the chaos, his music was true to ancient qawwali yet reinvented and redefined in a way beyond imagination. His music was magical, divine and touched your heart to the core. Jeff Buckley when heard him for the first time said "Then came the voice of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Part Buddha, part demon, part mad angel... his voice is a velvet fire, simply incomparable". He called him 'My Elvis'. In his interview of Khan for 'Interview magazine' (1996) said of his music "it is soaring, healing, penetrating music that rips the sky open, slowly revealing the radiant face of the Beloved". "How can a man fly effortlessly through the air and still look like he carries the ancient weight of six hundred years that is the art qawwali happily on his shoulders and into the present?" He did not play music but infact was music himself. Buckley loved to sing Khan's song 'yeh jo halka halka suroor hai'.

His music gets you in a trance, his voice takes you to another world where only you and your beloved exist, it forces you to look beyond and gives you a prespective in life. Khan Sahib's music makes you wonder the reason of your true existence and you are never ever the same. In his short life he contributed to the music world in a way beyond possible. The world renowned qawwali vocalist, died young of kidney disease complications in 1997 and was buried in his hometown Faisalabad, Pakistan. I feel a great sense of loss today. The loss of an extraordinary artist and the loss of a friend, Peter Gabriel (1997). With his death and loss of his qawwali there is a void which would take years to fill if at all possible.'pyaar kiya nahin jaata pyaar ho jata hai'!