Sunday, October 08, 2006

Because sufism sells

By JYOTHI PRABHAKAR - The Times of India
6 Mar 2006

Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.

Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.

Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.

Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."

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Sunday, October 08, 2006

Because sufism sells
By JYOTHI PRABHAKAR - The Times of India
6 Mar 2006

Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.

Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.

Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.

Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."

No comments: