Ever since the news of Ustad Hamid Ali Khan’s concert spread on social media, it created a fair bit of positive flurry among music fans in Karachi. Considered a living legend, the opportunity of seeing Khan live was not wasted by music fans who thronged to the venue this past Saturday to see him perform a poignant collection of classical, semi classical songs and ghazals.
Ustad Hamid Ali Khan’s impressive set contained a rich balance of classical, semi-classical songs as well as some powerful ghazals.
INSTEPREPORT
The living legend gives Karachi an unforgettable evening of music.
Karachi : Ever since the news of Ustad Hamid Ali Khan’s concert spread on social media, it created a fair bit of positive flurry among music fans in Karachi. Considered a living legend, the opportunity of seeing Khan live was not wasted by music fans who thronged to the venue this past Saturday to see him perform a poignant collection of classical, semi classical songs and ghazals.
Organised by Destiny Enterprises and held at DHA Creek Club, it was a night where the maestro regaled music aficionados with his versatility and impressive range.
For once, bypassing tardiness, the evening fortunately started on time and proved to be a refreshing break from the meaningless music that is being churned out these days.
Renowned singer Khurram Jamshed (KJ), who sang for the soundtrack of the TV play Ishq-e-Mamnoon, opened proceedings and played a set that contained a rich balance of ghazals as well as other tracks. His repertoire included numbers like ‘Tum Ko Dekha Tu Yeh Khayal Aya’, ‘Bekhudi’ and ‘Honton Se Choo lo’, among others.
In an unpredictable albeit welcome twist, Jamshed turned to the audience and accommodated their requests as well. In some songs like ‘Awargi’ and ‘Ishq Mein’, Jamshed let his playful side come through and the audience responded in kind with roaring applause.
The night was still young when Ustad Hamid Ali Khan arrived and cast a spell almost instantly. Amidst thunderous applause, he settled onstage with his harmonium and thanked the audience for waiting. With a semblance of peace, the musicians checked their instruments and without further delay began the music.
For those who don’t know, Khan, a scion of Patiala gharana and the son of Ustad Akhtar Hussein Khan, honed his passion for music from an early age and learned the art of music further by listening to his elder brothers, Bade Fateh Ali Khan and Amanat Ali Khan. After being groomed by this galaxy of legends, Khan has taken their legacy of music ahead with great skill and a marked passion. Today many outstanding singers are his disciples including his three sons - Nayab, Walli and Inam – who have also formed a music group called Raga Boyz.
On this night, Khan opened his set by performing the song ‘Suhani Rut’ which he had originally sung for the 1995 film, Sargam. While his fingers traced the keys of the harmonium, he belted out intricate notes and alaaps effortlessly that served as a classical feast for those in attendance. Switching towards ghazals, he sang ‘Guzar Gaya Jo Zamana’ (penned by Amjad Islam Amjad) before paying a fitting tribute to the late Asad Amanat Ali with his rendition of ‘Umran Langian’.
Accompanied by incredible group of musicians like Rahat on flute, Salman on keyboards, Nusrat and Asif on tabla, Iftikhar on dholak, Azhar on guitar and Mazhar on bass, Khan created an environment of musical reverie.
Khan, who was honoured with Pride of Performance nod in 2007, in a conversation with Instep on the sidelines of the event, noted how music is suffering in Pakistan due to non-seriousness on the part of both media and the government.
“This is reprehensible,” he said. “They should revisit their existing policies to give ample space to music so it can flourish. When there was only PTV, the situation was much better but now with array of channels around, things should have improved. But sadly, the situation it has worsened.”
As the night came to its conclusion, Hamid performed an energetic version of ‘Manu Tayray Jaya Sohna’ and closed the set with the iconic, patriotic number, ‘Aye Watan Pak Watan’.
