https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/sufi-qawwali-performance-nusrat-fateh-ali-khan
A link to something I found on the British Library website – around the same time Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was gaining global success and popularity. As mentioned below it was the first-ever performance to a non-south Asian performance – the catalyst performance for what was to come. I find it really interesting that despite it being an unfamiliar crowd you can still hear the authenticity in the Qawali.
” Live recording of the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, one of the key figures in the performance of qawwali – a form of Sufi devotional music that emerged in the 13th century in parts of North India and in Pakistan. The recording was made at the WOMAD Festival in Mersea Island in Essex in 1985.
What is the recording of?
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is considered a master of the qawwali genre, with an extremely broad vocal range and stamina that could sustain him in performance for hours on end. The songs typically start with a devotional poem, with the lead singer plus one or two side singers weaving around each other with melodies on a single rāga (melodic mode). This moves into more of a chant with all the singers joining in and building to an ecstatic climax backed by the harmonium and tabla drums. Each song can be anything from fifteen minutes to over two hours long. This extract is from a much longer performance of a song called Allah Ho Allah Ho.
Why is it so important?
This was Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s first performance to non-Asian concertgoers. It was hugely influential in introducing Sufism to a global audience.“