The Music of Pakistan includes diverse elements ranging from music from various parts of South Asia as well as Central Asian, Middle Eastern, and modern-day Western popular music influences. With these multiple influences, a distinctive Pakistani music has emerged.
Qawwali is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating in India.
The Sabri Brothers were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered as one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all times. The Sabri Brothers were led by Ghulam Farid Sabri and his brother Maqbool Ahmed Sabri. They are often referred to as Shahenshah-e-Qawwali and are also known as the roving ambassadors of Pakistan. The band was initially founded by Maqbool Ahmed Sabri at the age of 11 years and was known as Bacha Qawwal Party. His elder brother Ghulam Farid Sabri joined after insistence from their father. He became the leader of the group and the band soon became known as the Sabri Brothers. They were the first-ever qawwali artists to perform qawwali in United States and other Western countries; they were also the first-ever Asian artists to perform at New York's Carnegie Hall in 1975.
Aziz Mian Qawwal was a Pakistani traditional qawwal famous for singing ghazals in his own style of qawwali and is considered one of the greatest qawwals in South Asia. He holds the record for singing the longest commercially released qawwali, Hashr Ke Roz Yeh Poochhunga, which runs slightly over 150 minutes and. Aziz is known by sobriquets — "Shahenshah-e-Qawwali", "Fauji Qawwal"(Military Singer) since his early performances were often in army barracks, and "the Nietzschean qawwal".
Badar Miandad Khan, also known as Badar Ali Khan, was a Pakistani qawwali singer. He released several albums in Pakistan. Several albums were also released under UK and Indian labels.
Munshi Raziuddin Ahmed Khan was a Pakistani Qawwali singer, a classical musician and a researcher and scholar of music. He belongs to the well-known Qawwal Bachchon Ka Gharana of Delhi.
Qutub Baksh, more commonly known as Tanras Khan, was an Indian musician of the Hindustani Classical tradition known for being a luminary of the Delhi Gharana.(House of Delhi classical musicians). He was a court musician and music teacher to the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar II.
Ghulam Fariduddin Ayaz Al-Hussaini Qawwal is a Pakistani Sufi devotional singer. He belongs to the Qawwal Bachchon Ka Gharana of Delhi.
Ustad Bahauddin Khan Qawwal was a Pakistani Qawwali musician.
Coke Studio is a Pakistani television programme and international music franchise which features studio-recorded music performances by established and emerging artists. It is the longest-running annual television music show in Pakistan, running annually since 2008.
Warsi Brothers are an Indian Qawwali musical group, consisting of brothers Nazeer Ahmed Khan Warsi and Naseer Ahmed Khan Warsi, along with eight accompanists. They are based in Hyderabad.
Chhaap Tilak Sab Chheeni, is a Ghazal written and composed by Amir Khusro, a 14th-century Sufi mystic, in popular Western Indian language Braj Bhasha. Due to the resonance of its melody and mystical lyrics, it is frequently heard in Qawwali concerts across Indian Subcontinent. Chaapp Tilak Sab Chheeni is considered as Amir Khusru‘s most known Kalam which is basically a penned version of his imagination of devotion and the joy of oneness with the eternal one. This poetry is an epic example where an inherent middle eastern art form gets entangled with the Indic philology, custom and art a unique twist between the two artforms. This kind of devotion is rarely seen in Islamic ghazals and qawwalis preceding it. This poetry is a great example of the role both cultures played to create this Ghazal and Qawwali which has a unique essence combining both Indic and Islamic culture which inherently created a new unique art form which contributed to the early beginnings of the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb culture to be developed.
Ustad Iqbal Hussain Khan Bandanawazi Qawwal (Urdu: ٱستاد اقبال حسن قان بنره نواذى; 1942-2010) was a Sufi qawwal of Hyderabad India. He had worked as a top artist in All India Radio Akashwani for many years. His Qawwali group is known as Bandanawazi Qawwal he learned Indian classical music from his father Ustad Qurban Hussain Khan.
Ustad Ateeq Hussain Khan Bandanawazi Al-Hashmi Qawwal is a Hindustani Qawwal.
Sher Miandad Khan, is a Pakistani qawwal and a folk singer. He was born in Pakpattan, Pakistan and started his qawwali group in 1996. He adopted qawwali singing as his family tradition. His grandfather Din Mohammad Qawwal was a renowned qawwal of India and Pakistan. He learned music from his father Ustad Miandad Khan. He is a cousin of renowned qawwal Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Sher Miandad is the younger brother of another popular Pakistani qawwal Badar Ali Khan also known as Badar Miandad Qawwal.
Maqbool Ahmed Sabri was a Pakistani qawwali singer and a prominent member of the Sabri Brothers, one of the greatest qawwali groups of all times which belonged to Pakistan. The Sabri Brothers were honoured with the Pride of Performance Award in 1978.
Abdullah Niazi Qawwal is a Pakistani Qawwal. He belongs to the Qawwal Bachchon Ka Gharana of Delhi. He is the eldest son of Manzoor Niazi Qawwal.
The Qawwal Bacchon Ka Gharana or Delhi Gharana is the oldest khayal gharana of the Hindustani Classical music tradition. It was founded by Amir Khusrau and his students.
Ashraf Hydroz is an Indian Sufi and Hindustani classical musician, primarily focusing on Qawwali, mystic ghazals and Sufiana Kalaams, a devotional musical form of the Sufi Muslims. He is a disciple of renowned Hindustani musician Ustad Fayaz Khan from Bangalore.
