Owing to India's vastness and diversity, Indian music encompasses numerous genres in multiple varieties and forms which include classical music, folk (Bollywood), rock, and pop. It has a history spanning several millennia and developed over several geo-locations spanning the sub-continent. Music in India began as an integral part of socio-religious life.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was a Pakistani vocalist, musician, composer and music director, primarily a singer of qawwali, a form of Sufi devotional music. He is considered by The New York Times to be the greatest Sufi singer in the Punjabi, Urdu and Hindi languages, and one of the greatest qawwali singers in history; he is often referred to as "Shahenshah-e-Qawwali". He was described as the fourth greatest singer of all time by LA Weekly in 2016. He was known for his vocal abilities and could perform at a high level of intensity for several hours. He belonged to the Qawwal Bacchon Gharana extending the 600-year old qawwali tradition of his family, Khan is widely credited with introducing qawwali music to international audiences.
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.
Bengali music comprises a long tradition of religious and secular song-writing over a period of almost a millennium. Composed with lyrics in the Bengali language, Bengali music spans a wide variety of styles.
Talvin Singh OBE is an English musician, producer, and composer. A tabla player, he is known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass. Singh is generally considered involved with an electronica subgenre called Asian Underground, and more recently as Indian and/or Asian electronica.
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan is a Pakistani musician, primarily of Qawwali, a devotional music of the Muslim Sufis. Khan is one of the biggest and highest paid singers in Pakistan. He is the nephew of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, son of Farrukh Fateh Ali Khan and grandson of Qawwali singer Fateh Ali Khan. In addition to Qawwali, he also performs ghazals and other light music. He is also popular as a playback singer in Bollywood and the Pakistan film industry.
Ustad Bade Fateh Ali Khan was among the foremost Khyal vocalists in Pakistan, and a leading exponent of the Patiala Gharana tradition of music. He was the younger of the legendary singing duo Amanat Ali and Fateh Ali, who enjoyed immense prestige and success across the subcontinent and beyond until the sudden and unexpected death of Ustad Amanat Ali Khan in 1974. For his contributions to classical music, Fateh Ali was honoured with the highest national literary award of Pakistan – the Pride of Performance – by the President of Pakistan in 1969.
Allauddin Khan, also known as Baba Allauddin Khan was an Indian sarod player and multi-instrumentalist, composer and one of the most notable music teachers of the 20th century in Indian classical music.
Ustad Sultan Khan was an Indian sarangi player and classical vocalist belonging to Sikar Gharana. He was one of the founding members of the Indian fusion group Tabla Beat Science, with Zakir Hussain and Bill Laswell. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour, in 2010.
Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan is a Pakistani pop and classical singer, songwriter, and composer belonging to the Patiala Gharana tradition of music. He was the lead vocalist of the Pakistani pop rock band Fuzön until 2006 and is a prominent playback singer in the Indian film industry. The youngest son of noted classical vocalist Ustad Amanat Ali Khan, Ali started his musical training at the age of four under the tutelage of his uncle, Ustad Bade Fateh Ali Khan, who was widely regarded as the foremost exponent of Hindustani classical music in Pakistan.
The Patiala gharana is one of the vocal gharanas of Hindustani classical music, named after the city of Patiala in Punjab, India where it was established. The gharana was founded in the mid to late 19th century by Mian Kallu, a sārangi player of the Jaipur durbar. He received his musical training from the last Mughal king Bahadur Shah Zafar’s court musician Qutub Bakhsh ‘Tanras’ Khan and went on to become the court musician to the Maharaja of Patiala. Eventually, the mantle was passed on to his son, ‘General’ Ali Baksh Khan and his close friend ‘Colonel’ Fateh Ali Khan, both of whom became court musicians in the court of Maharaja Rajinder Singh. The titles of 'general' and 'colonel' of music were bestowed upon them by the Victor Alexander Bruce, the 9th Earl of Elgin, after the duo had enthralled him with their performance. The duo was popularly referred to as ‘Ali-a-Fattu ki Jodi’. Although the Patiala gharana was originally founded by Mian Kallu, it is widely acknowledged that it was Ali Baksh Khan and Fateh Ali Khan who popularised the Patiala tradition of singing and brought it acclaim and attention across the subcontinent.
Kailasa is an Indian fusion band, founded by Kailash Kher. The name of the band is taken from an accented pronunciation of Kailash's own name as well as Mount Kailash, the abode of Hindu God Shiva. Along with guitars, drums and keyboards, the band incorporates classical Indian instruments and sometimes traditional lyrics into their songs to infuse folk and a Sufi hue.
Pandit Niladri Kumar is an Indian sitar player and music composer.
Zila Khan is an Indian Sufi singer and actor. She sings classical and semi-classical musical forms and performs in the tradition of Imdadkhani gharana.She has acted in Bajirao Mastani a film by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and also actively acts in theatrical plays like Gauhar. She is a playback singer for Bollywood films and advertisements. Zila stands for Freedom in Education and Gender Equality. She is a composer and music director. Zila also produced and directed a documentary called Spirit To Soul on her father Ustad Vilayat Khan.
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 South Asia. 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. He connected this inspiration with his own devotion for his spiritual mentor Nizamuddin Auliya. to write this ghazal.
Dama Dam Mast Qalandar is a spiritual Sufi qawwali written in the honour of the most revered Sufi saint of Sindh, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (1177–1274) of Sehwan Sharif. The original poem was initially written by the 13th-century Sufi poet Amir Khusrow, then further modified by Bulleh Shah in the 18th century.
Tochi Raina is an Indian singer, composer and philosopher, best known as a playback singer in Hindi films. His most notable works include the songs Kabira for the movie "Yeh jawani Hai deeewani", "Iktara" from "Wake up Sid", Ishq Waale Chor Hain for the Hindi movie Kya yahi sach hai with Vishal Khurana, Saibo for the Hindi movie Shor in the City a duet with Shreya Ghosal, Maldar Ki Jeb for the movie Bhindi Baazaar Inc. and Aali Re for the movie No One Killed Jessica. He recorded a music album 'Tochinaamah' consisting 3 song – Saaiyaan, Jamoora and Akela
Abdul Sattar Khan popularly known as Ustad Tari Khan is a Pakistani tabla player and vocalist. Tari Khan hails from the Punjab gharana and is the student of Ustad Mian Shaukat Hussain. He has been awarded with many accolades such as Taj Poshi, the Hazrat Amir Khusrow Award, as well as Pakistan's Pride of Performance Award in 2008. Tari Khan belongs to the tabla playing gharana called the Punjab gharana.
The Vasantotsav is an annual Indian Classical music, semi classical, folk and light music festival held in Pune. The festival is organized by Dr. Vasantrao Deshpande Pratisthan, Pune, in the memory of the late Dr. Vasantrao Deshpande by inviting respected artists to perform at this event. Nana Patekar is the pillar supporting this entire event.
Hari & Sukhmani is an Indian folktronic duo comprising Hari Singh Jaaj and Sukhmani Malik, who are known for fusing traditional folk music of Punjab with electronic music, and incorporating elements from Sufi poetry of Bulle Shah, Baba Farid, Kabir, and Shah Hussain, in their compositions.
