Working towards my audio project, I began add In the musical excerpts, choosing to pick the clip of Fanna-Fil-Allah, as I felt it was one of the most “authentic” forms of Qawwali I noticed upon my research. After the introduction, where I talk about the origins of Qawali, I include the coke studios Qawali performance to create a dynamic between the two – one was performed without microphones and on the streets of Morroco, and the other – a performance in a studio, with microphones, synthesisers and guitars.
Although subtle, I think it creates the dynamic comparison that I am looking for, one sounds cleaner and professional whilst the other sounds very raw. It gives the audience the opportunity to listen to the two ends of the Qawwali spectrum in quick succession as I begin to talk about the popularity of Qawwali.
I then moved towards talking about Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan as he played a vital role in bringing Qawwali to the West. Nusrat almost blurs the lines between commercial Qawwali and the authentic Qawwali played at Durgahs. I think this was because he did both – he played at large venues but also made frequent trips to the villages and Durghas. I think this connection and dichotomy between the westerns world and his home reflects my listening experience as someone living in the west but with parents of South Asian origin.
I think this is truly reflected when I got my brother to interview my dad with questions I had beforehand in a very expository mode – cutting out the questions I had (Why do you like Qawwali? What does Qawwali mean to you) and It brung out a very conversational tone – compared to me he really understands the nuances, the beauty and the wisdom behind Qawwali in every way.