The history of Qawwali predates to more than 700 years. It is a form of Sufi devotional music. Love, devotion, and intimacy are three main ingredients of Qawwali. Its curative effects are generally known and native healers often recommend mentally disturbed people to attend Qawwali sessions.
Today the Qawwali is a popular form of spiritual music around the world. It has brought the attention of young audience world-wide. Among many international performers of Qawwali, the name of Fanna-Fi-Allah (a US based Sufi Qawwali group) is well known among Qawwali lovers.
The popular western group recently visited different cities of Pakistan and presented live Sufi Qawwali shows. The group leader describes his travel experience in Sindh as "We've been weaving our way through Sindh over the past week, crossing the sacred and glorious Sindhhu River. Offering our qawwali reverence at the shines of Sufi masters: Hazrat Abdullah Shah Ghazi, Hazrat Shah Abdul Latif Betai, Hazrat Shahbaz Qalandar, and Hazrat Sachal Sarmast."
The group have already entertained audience of Sindh. The Sufi band will soon perform in Lahore, Gujrat, Islamabad, Muzaffarabad and Faisalabad. Led by Qawwal Tahir Faridi on harmonium, the group of nine includes tabla player Aminah Chishti and vocalist Salim Chishti. Tahir Faridi Qawwal studies under vocal masters Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Pashupati Nath Mishra, Sher Ali Khan, Muazzum Qawwal. Tahir teaches vocal music and harmonium within the traditional raaga system of India and Pakistan. He is the leader of Fanna-fi-Allah.
Aminah Chishti Qawwal has been a leading force in the art of Pakistani tabla. Student of the great Ustad Dildar Hussain Khan (who performed with Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn for 30 years), she was formally initiated by her teacher in 2003. Aminah has changed the boundaries of women in Pakistan by being given permission to perform at the tombs of Pakistan's great Muslim saints (where women are usually not allowed to enter). She is a powerful player and passionate lover of Qawwali. Laali Qalandar has been an integral part of the group since 2001. He has travelled several times with the group to Pakistan and India. He is a passionate and talented vocalist. Jahangir Baba has experience in a range of musical styles and has also been with the group since 2001, travelling to India and Pakistan to perform.
Salim Chishti, a greater lover of Indian and Pakistani music, travels with the group to Pakistan to participate in the Urs festivals, and studies classical music in India with Pt. Devashish Dey and with famous Drupad singers 'The Gundecha Brothers'. He also studies Oud (a middle eastern instrument) in Egypt. Ali Shan has travelled in India and Pakistan, following his love of the culture, people and music. He has studied with Pt. Devashish Dey in India and with Ustad Humayoun Sakhi.
The group features six US-based and four Pakistani Qawwals. Key members of the group have spent over 20 years in dedicated study with the masters of this classical art form in Pakistan and India and are deeply respected throughout the sub-continent. During their 13 years of touring in different parts of the world including USA, Pakistan, Europe, Indonesia, India and Egypt, they have captivated audiences with their dynamic passion and skill, and continue to deepen the appreciation for this great Sufi tradition in the West.
The group told media "It is a great honour for us to be performing "We perform internationally spreading the message of peace and love among the people. This is how we have also been helping the people in America gain a better understanding of Islam and also Sufism."
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