Qawwali workshop at Napa on 9th

A workshop on Qawwali is to be conducted at the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) on July 9 by US-based Pakistani electrical engineer Ally Adnan.

This was announced at a press conference at Napa by the academy’s administration director Arshad Mehmood on Thursday afternoon.  Adnan graduated from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in electrical engineering. However, his real passion is the arts.

“The West has tried all sorts of isms, capitalism, and others, but there’s not much solace to be found in any of them and now they have settled for the fact that Sufism is the answer to all social ills,” said Adnan. Hence, he said, the Qawwali was gaining popularity in the West, including the US.

The seminar will comprise lectures, demonstrations and performances, followed by a question-answer sessions. “There’s lots of interest in Sufism in the US. We have designed the seminar to, among other things, incorporate aspects like Qawwali etiquette,” said Adnan.

It was also announced at the press conference that Daniyal Wasti, a Napa graduate of 2011, would be proceeding to South Korea on a six-month scholarship. He will be pursuing training in music at the National Theatre of Korea.