Who was he?
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Khan was one of the most popular singers in the Indian subcontinent. He predominantly sang qawwali, the music of devotional Sufism, but incorporated other forms including Khyal (traditional classical) to produce a unique style that appealed to followers of all religions. He performed with the Party, a group of highly trained Pakistani musicians which included several family members.
In 1971, Khan took over from his father (Ustad Fateh Ali Khan) as leader of the Party. Through the 1970s and 1980s Khan’s music began to become increasingly synonymous with India’s and Pakistan’s dynamic film industry. Peter Gabriel’s admiration of Nusrat’s singing has led to his collaboration with WOMAD on projects including a compilation album, several festival appearances and more recently releases on the Virgin /Real World Records label, recorded in England.
The first of these albums was ‘Shahen-Shahwas’, named after Nusrat’s Pakistani nickname, Shahen-Shah-e-Qawwali (The Brightest Star In Qawwali). On the album ‘Mustt Mustt’ Nusrat worked with experimental composer Michael Brook in an attempt to give his sound a western edge. Traditional songs were replaced by classical vocal exercises which were edited around western rhythms. A remix of the title track by the group Massive Attack led to a surprise UK club hit.
Nusrat returned to his roots with ‘Shahbaaz’. Successive albums for Real World have continued to see cross-experimentation between qawwali and Western influences. Khan died suddenly of kidney and liver failure in London, 1997.
Source : ArtsWorld