Remembering our Legends: Ustad Salamat Ali Khan - the doyen of classical musicians in Pakistan

Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, the Chief exponent of Sham Chaurasi clan of kheyal singers died in Lahore on July 11, 2001 at the age of 67. He was the doyen of classical musicians in Pakistan. His death cast a pall of gloom over the melodic scene in Pakistan, which was already under pressure from different pop genres, local as well as alien.
Late Ustad Salamat Ali Khan was the second among five sons of Wilayat Ali Khan, a professional dhurpad singer from the Sham Chaurasi gharana musicians, whose other four sons also contributed significantly to the flowering and promotion of classical music in the Sub-continent.
The beginning of the second half of 20th century witnessed the emergence of certain musical luminaries on the melodic firmament in Pakistan. Included among them were the duos of Nazakat Ali Khan-Salamat Ali Khan and Amanat Ali Khan-Fateh Ali Khan. Already popular among the fraternity of classical musicians were Ustad Umeed Ali Khan, Raushan Ara Begum, Ustad Akhter Husain Khan and several other senior practitioners of this esoteric art form. To fill the void created by the departure of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to India in the early 1950s, the two duos of young classical vocalists from professional gharana musicians did much, as their mellifluous renditions of kheyal, thumris and dadras contributed much to the promotion of art music in Pakistan.
Almost simultaneously, the two duos of young vocalists stormed the musical scene in Pakistan and within a short span of ten years they became household names in the country. Their fame spread across the international borders as well. Of them, late Ustad Salamat Ali Khan was proclaimed by connoisseurs and critics as one of the best kheyal singers, who was equally good at singing thumris. For over 25 years he practised the sophisticated art of classical singing with his elder brother Nazakat Ali Khan and brought so much cheers to the votaries of art music.
Late Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, who was born in the small village of Sham Chaurasi near Jallandhar railway station in east Punjab, possessed a kind of charm, which almost immediately put one's at ease. He was initially trained in music by his father Wilayat Khan and later by maternal uncles, including the well-known vocalist and composer Master Niaz Hussain Shami. A large-hearted artiste, he also paid nazranas (tributes) to a number of senior classicists, including Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.
Besides adhering to established norms of classical singing, Salamat Ali Khan employed his extremely malleable and tuneful voice in delineating the theme of a raga, while giving a performance both in duo with his brother (and later with his son) as well as a solo vocalist. During the prime of his youth, he mesmerised his listeners with the magic of his music. His emotional involvement and total commitment to the cause of classical music combined to create a catharsis among his listeners, whether or not they could fathom the sophistries of art music. His long journey in the world of music consumed 60 out of his 67-year life span. Like other professional gharana musicians, he also started his career at the early age of seven.
The duo of Amanat Ali Khan-Fateh Ali Khan of Patiala gharana of musicians was the only male singers in that period to ward off the Nazakat Ali Khan-Salamat Ali Khan challenge. Both gained popularity and won recognition soon after the launching of their careers as adult artistes.
Late Ustad Salamat Ali Khan along with his elder brother toured a large number of countries under official and private auspices where they introduced our classical music and put Pakistan on the musical map of the world.
Later in his career, he spent almost six months in a year touring different countries of the world, especially the United Kingdom and United States, to earn enough money to lead a comfortable life and also to promote our classical music to inquisitive music buffs in these countries.
His five sons, in their own rights, have also won recognition as accomplished practitioners of classical music. Contrary to family tradition, he also allowed one of his daughters - Riffat- to practice music and make public demonstrations of her prowess before Western audiences. Married to an American, she lives in the United States.
At international musical festivals across Europe and the United States in the last two decades of the 20th century, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan was a continuous sensation. In trio with his sons Sharafat and Shafqat, he left enduring impact on his foreign audiences turning the exotic music of the East into quixotic listening experience for them. He had the distinction of becoming a great name in the music circles of the Sub-continent of his time. The salient features of his music were his knowledge and demonstration of classical genres, his extremely melodious voice and his mastery over rhythmic manipulations. A tabla player of ordinary calibre hesitated in providing rhythmic accompaniment to the maestro. For his strong proclivity to involve in jugalbandi (dialogue) with the accompanying tabla players, he was sometimes accused of getting himself involved in and carried away with his rhythmic exuberance.
For the benefit of posterity, he trained all his five sons in the art of classical and light varieties of music. Of them, he highly praised the youngest, Shafqat Ali Khan, whom he lovingly called "my ditto copy". His son Latafat Ali Khan is practising the art of ghazal singing and is currently based in London.
Ustad Salamat Ali Khan was a rare breed among practitioners of the art of classical vocalisation, whose talent had been recognised by the State twice in his lifetime. He received the Pride of Performance and Nishan-e-Imtiaz medals from the President of Pakistan at two different occasions in the past. In his death both Pakistan as well as the world of music became the poorer.