Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: Human Embodiment of Music?

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is known as one of the greatest singers ever, possessing an astounding 6 octave range. He is also known as an incredible Qawwali singer, a style that is apparently quite difficult to master. Qawwali is the devotional music of Sufis who are essentially Muslim mystics. He recorded extensively, and is known as the most prolific Qawwali singer.

            Nusrat was born October 13, 1948 in the Punjab region in Pakistan, which had become a country only the previous year. Nusrat’s father, a Qawwali singer himself, died when Nusrat was 16. Days after his father’s death he dreamt of his father touching his throat; he woke up singing. Forty days later Nusrat gave his first public performance at his father’s funeral. Afterwards he became the official leader of his family’s Qawwali party, thus beginning many years of singing and collaboration. Nusrat also contributed many songs to film soundtracks. Nusrat died on August 16, 1997 to a heart attack. 

            Ali Khan is well known for bring this traditional music to Pakistanis and non-Pakistanis alike. The singer also carries a legacy of collaborating extensively; he worked with guitarists and other musicians over the course of his recorded music. For example, Mustt Mustt, released in 1990, features Michael Brook, a guitarist and a friend of Peter Gabriel. Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of Christ featured Gabriel as the composer; Nusrat contributed vocals to a couple tracks on the soundtrack. The singer also carries a legacy of extensively collaborating with guitarists and other performers.

According to Bilal Qureshi, the writer of the NPR article on Ali Khan, “Nusrat’s greatest legacy may have been to shatter the idea of what it means to be a traditional Muslim singer.” His death in 1997 sparked a nationwide mourning in Pakistan. In the meantime he left behind hundreds of recordings and a vast legacy. His influence extends beyond cultural borders. Notable alternative rock musician Jeff Buckley was a huge fan of Nusrat and bears musical influence from him in songs like “Mojo Pin” and “Dream Brother.” The NPR article also notes that Nusrat’s inclusion as a great singer was essentially unanimous, thus highlighting his influence.

            “Mustt Mustt” is a pretty well known Nusrat song. The song features prominently on Mustt Mustt, Nusrat’s collaboration with guitarist Michael Brook. The album, much like the song, mixed guitar with Pakistani folk music. “Mustt Mustt” features Punjabi music, driving bass, and melodic guitar. The result is quite cohesive.

            This song was remixed by the British trip hop collective Massive Attack in 1990; this remix garnered a lot of recognition for the album. At the time this remix was the only single sung in Urdu to chart in the U.K.

“Mustt Mustt”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGS--kKQXH4

“Mustt Mustt (Remix)”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR67nIhLaBg

            Ali Khan also worked with Eddie Vedder, lead singer of Pearl Jam; they collaborated on the 1996 film Dead Man Walking’s soundtrack, which yielded two songs. “The Long Road” mixes folk and Pakistani folk music as well as the singing styles of Vedder and Ali Khan. “The Face of Love” off the same soundtrack is more upbeat but very much in the same vein.

“The Long Road”:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x_ZNwjoWHs
“The Face of Love”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igxKrNEvFv4

            Another good film example, “Passion” from the Scorsese film features the collaboration of Nusrat and Peter Gabriel. Here ambient music meets world music and the result is quite entertaining.

“Passion”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5_FtHnpmNw

Nusrat Ali Fateh Khan has great range both in terms of his vocal range and the collaborations he participates in. His influence is understandable because he is both a greater singer and a musician curious in different styles. He may be dead but he has a vast legacy behind him and continues to influence music. His voice works in Punjabi music, folk fusion, rock fusion, and even ambient music, as demonstrated by the following songs.

Works Cited

1.      Biography For Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.” IMDb. Web. 18 Jul 2012.

<http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002163/bio>

2.       “Mustt Mustt (1990).” Michael Brook. Web. 18 Jul 2012. 

<http://michaelbrookmusic.com/mustt-mustt>

3.      Buckley, Jeff. “Nusrat.” Liquid Gnome. Web. 18 Jul 2012.

< http://www.liquidgnome.com/JeffBuckley/nusrat.html>

4.      Qureshi, Bilal. “Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: The Voice of Pakistan.” NPR Music. 

22 Feb 2010. Web. 18 Jul 2012. 

<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1239735>