An evening of alluring subcontinental music

The Ninth Tehzeeb Festival and Awards got off to a start on Friday evening with alluring performances by artistes, both seasoned and young, with a heartening display of talent both in vocal and instrumental music at the Pakistan Arts Council.

The function was sponsored jointly by the Arts Council and the Tehzeeb Foundation.

The opening performance of the evening was by young Sitarist Turab Ali. He was accompanied at the Tabla by noted Tabla maestro Ustad Basheer Khan. The piece he rendered was the Raag Abhogi Kanhra.

The young maestro seemed to have total mastery over the instrument and his rendition was really melodious. His nimble finger work was highly admirable.

Equally masterly was the performance of Tabla maestro Ustad Basheer Khan and the coordination between the two of them was highly admirable. The soft, lilting melody was a real soothing sound for the ear.

Next was another Sitar recital by Farhan Rais Khan, son of the veteran Ustad, the late Ustad Rais Khan. The tune he rendered on the strings was Kafi Kanhra. One could safely contend that he was heir to his late father’s talent, seeing his precise movement of fingers run along the strings. Again, he was accompanied by Ustad Basheer Khan on the Tabla.

Then came the vocalists and some young ones really displayed oozing talent.

The best among the young vocalists was certainly Ahsan Ali with his presentation of Raag Bhopali. He had an admirable control over his vocal cords. In addition to that was his highly mellifluous, melodious voice.

Next to come was another young vocalist, Imran Ilyas Khan, of the Patiala Gharana. He rendered the Raag Koshak-Khayal. It was a highly admirable rendition.

Next was “Urdu Ghazal Ka Safar”, curated by Sharif Awan. Here Awan traced the metamorphosis of the Ghazal in the subcontinent over time, especially in Pakistan over the last 70 years. This was followed by a Ghazal by the young Lahore-based artiste, Wahdat Rameez.

Welcoming the guests, the Arts Council President, Ahmed Shah, lauded the painstaking efforts of the husband-wife duo of Sharif and Malahat Awan, founders of the Tehzeeb Foundation, to not only preserve but also to promote Pakistani and subcontinental musical heritage.

Noted TV and showbiz personality Anwar Maqsood narrated his association with the late Ustad Rais Khan and shared fond reminiscences of him with the audiences. His speech was profusely interspersed with his characteristic ready wit and pungent humour which kept the audiences giggling.

A book, Celestial Sitar, on the late maestro Rais Khan, written by SM Shahid, was also launched.