Qawwali

Qawwali (Nastaʿlīq: قوّالی; Gurmukhī:ਕਵਾਲੀ; Devanāgarī: क़व्वाली; Bangla: কাওয়ালি) is a form of Sufi devotional music popular in South Asia: in the Punjab and Sindh regions of Pakistan; in Hyderabad, Delhi and other parts of India, especially North India; as well as Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet and many parts of Bangladesh. It is one of the musical tradition that stretches back for more than 700 years.

Originally performed mainly at Sufi shrines or dargahs throughout South Asia, it has also gained mainstream popularity. Qawwali music received international exposure through the work of the late Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, largely due to several releases on the Real World label, followed by live appearances at WOMAD festivals. Other famous Qawwali singers include Pakistan's Sabri Brothers, Bahauddin Qutbuddin and Aziz Mian.

Origins of Qawwali

Delhi's Sufi saint Amir Khusro Dehlavi of the Chisti order of Sufis is credited with fusing the Persian, Arabic, Turkish, and Indian musical traditions to create Qawwali as we know it today in the late 13th century in India. The word Sama is often still used in Central Asia and Turkey to refer to forms very similar to Qawwali, and in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, the formal name used for a session of Qawwali is Mehfil-e-Sama.