Young talent perform at Mausikaar music evening

Islamabad
Against all odds, the Mausikaar Trust organises a musical evening once a month, trying to stick to its agenda of preserving the traditional music of Pakistan. This month’s programme featured the showcasing of new talent -- two of whom are carrying on the legacy of their forefathers, and the third learning to play the stringed ‘rubarb’ because he is passionate about this popular instrument from Khyber Pakhtunkhkwa. The event was arranged by eminent musician, Prof: Shahbaz Ali who teaches music at the National College of Arts, and held in the Dr A Q Khan auditorium on the premises of the Sir Syed Memorial Society.
The attendance by Mausikaar members was thin but students of NCA who are learning music showed up in support, encouraged by their teacher who felt they should also listen to others while mastering the art As someone remarked it was ‘something new’ to hear classical tones/notes in the folk music played on the ‘rubarb’. It has to be said - they made an appreciative and attentive audience!
After a nice hot cup of tea the programme began with Vice President/Public Relations, Mehreen Khan welcoming the audience and saying a few words about the trust after which she introduced Prof: Shahbaz so he could explain what the programme was all about. The Professor explained that along with his student who did not belong to any ‘gharana’, there were two young men who belonged to families that were well known for their musical skills – Mohammed Mujtaba Haider from the Punjab ‘gharana’ on the ‘tabla’ and Iftikhar Ali son of Ustad Sharif Husain (the respected composer of Radio Pakistan Rawalpindi) on the ‘santoor’.
The musical performance was divided into three solo acts. First was Mohammed Mujtaba on the ‘tabla’ accompanied by Prof. Shahbaz on the harmonium. He played the different beats of the ‘tabla’ like ‘teen taal’ etc: and received repeated applause -- Salman Ahmed, an expert on music terming his rendition ‘very good.’ In the second act, Mujtaba accompanied Adnan Haider (a student of Prof Shahbaz and president of the NCA Music society) on the ‘rubarb’ (a rare choice for new musicians) and they made a great duo, earning the same accolade. As someone remarked it was ‘something new’ to hear classical tones/notes in the folk music played on the ‘rubarb’.
The third act was by Iftikhar Ali on the ‘santoor’, accompanied by ‘tabla’ player Faizan. This very delicate instrument, native to Jammu and Kashmir is used to accompany folk singers, and is also not a popular choice for musicians, so it was a treat to hear Iftikhar render ‘raag darbari’ as his contribution for this evening of instrumental music. Faizan was a little over enthusiastic with his performance on the ‘tabla’ in the beginning but soon adopted a soft playing style so the melodious tones of the ‘santoor’ could be heard – the duo’s performance receiving the same amount of appreciation as the previous performers. Committee member, Shazia Ismat gave the vote of thanks and hoped everyone enjoyed the evening. “We will try and organize more events such as this in future,” she promised.
In his closing remarks, Professor Shahbaz regretted that not a single television channel devoted enen ten minutes to classical music what to say anything of encouraging young talent, of which there was an abundance in the country. “These young musicians struggle to uphold the legacy of their forefathers or fulfill their dreams,” he said. “With the support of people like you and organizations like Mausikaar, which are a platform for them to showcase their talent -- they are encouraged and will contribute positively to our musical heritage. Thank you all for being here.”