WORLD TRANSLATION CENTER IST EIN FÜHRENDER ANBIETER VON SPRACHÜBERSETZUNGEN UND SPRACHAUFNAHMEN DURCH PROFIS ÜBERALL AUF DER WELT.
World Translation Center Music Blog
Using Music to Build
Bridges Between Cultures
Our music blog features music from around the world, traditional music, modern music, singer and
instrumental, as well as some interesting facts about the different musicians, countries and cultures.
The Qawwali King
This past Sunday, August 16th, marked the 18th anniversary of the death of Ustaad Nusraf Fateh Ali Khan, the ‘Qawwali King’. He was famous for introducing the Qawwali genre of music to international audiences. His catchy tunes and magical voice spoke to people across the world.
The World Music and Dance Festival was his platform to international fame. Ustaad released 25 Qawwali albums, of which many earned him awards. Two major hits for him were Haq Ali Ali and Dam Mast Qalandar, which remain classics today.
Qawwali is devotional or Sufi music that is popular in much of South Asia, especially Pakistan, Northern India, and Bangladesh. Qawwali songs are primarily sung in Urdu language. Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and is an official language in six states of India. It is closely related to Standard Hindi.
Typical qawwalis are between fifteen and thirty minutes long, however two songs of maestro Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan last well over sixty minutes each. Qawwali songs start with an instrumental prelude.
While Ustaad’s life was cut short at the young age of 48 his music is still alive in the hearts of many.
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