When I sing for God, I feel myself in accord with God
"When I sing for God, I feel myself in accord with God, and the house of God, Mecca, is right in front of me. And I worship. When I sing for Mohammed, peace be upon him, our prophet, I feel like I am sitting right next to his tomb, Medina, and paying him respect and admitting to myself that I accept his message." - Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, May 1997.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
One of the most popular singers in the Indian subcontinent, Khan predominantly sang qawwali, the music of devotional Sufism, but incorporated other forms including Khyal (traditional classical) to produce a unique style that appealed to followers of all religions. He performed with the Party, a group of highly trained Pakistani musicians which included several family members.
Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was born shortly after the independence of India and Pakistan on 12 July, 1948 in Lyallpur (later renamed Faisalabad). He comes from a distinguished family of musicians steeped in classical and mystical Islamic tradition. His ancestors were great practitioners of qawwali amongst whom Mian Dad Sabib and Mian Kbaliq were also considered great dbrupad singers. His father, Ustad Fateh Ali Khan who died in 1964, was famous both as a classical musician and a master of qawwali. His detailed and expert knowledge of music of the Indian sub-continent provided the inspiration to develop qawwali into a fine art. Nusrat Fateh All Khan as a child and a young boy was given formal training mainly in classical music and mystical Sufi poetry in Persian, Punjab! and Urdu. He was sixteen when his father died and his father's brother, Ustad SalamatAliKban, began to teach him qawwali thereafter. The family therefore have been pre-eminent in keeping alive the pure qawwall tradition. The partnership ended with the death of the latter in 1971. Thereafter, Nusrat took over the leadership of the qawwali ensemble. after experiencing recurring dreams that he was singing at the famous Muslim shrine of Hazratja Khawaja Moid-Ud-Din Christie in Ajmer, India. This dream became reality eight years later This was a turning point in his career for his fame began to spread throughout Pakistan. At the annual Sufi festival of the patron saint of the city of Lahore, Nusrat was swept forward on a wave of devotional fervor and acclaim on the first night's qawwali performance in 1972. National acknowledgment of his art came in 1987 when he was awarded the President's Pride Of Performance.
Through the 70s and 80s Khan's music began to become increasingly synonymous with India and Pakistan's vibrant film industry. Such was his popularity with the stars of the movies that in 1979 he was invited to sing at the wedding of Rishi, son of actor/director Raj Kapoor, in front of the most prominent members of the Bombay film industry.Peter Gabriel's admiration of Nusrat's singing has led to him working with WOMAD on projects including a compilation album, many festival appearances and more recently releases on the Virgin /Real World Records label, recorded in England.
The first of these, Shahen-Shahwas named after Nusrat's Pakistani nickname, Shahen-Shah-e-Qawwali (The Brightest Star In Qawwali).
ForMustt Mustt, Nusrat worked with experimental composer Michael Brookin an attempt to give his sound a western orientation. On all but two tracks, traditional songs were replaced by classical vocal exercises which were edited around western rhythms. Brook said of the project 'everyone was excited, although it wasn't painless - it worked'. A remix of the title track by Massive Attack led to a surprise UK club hit. Nusrat returned to his roots withShahbaaz, four traditional qawwali songs all praising the Devine Beloved. Successive albums for Real World have continued to see cross-experimentation between qawwali and Western influences, though none were as integrationist asMustt Mustt.
Despite this, the vibrancy of the artist's deeply spiritual performances, on record and stage, militates against the suspicion that he had forgotten his roots. His sudden death robbed the world of one of it's finest voices. He died on 16 August, 1997 at Cromwell Hopital, London, due to liver and kidney failure.