Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

Bliss Out

Wine, women and song — Pakistan’s qawwali music has all three. But its lyrics about amorous yearning and intoxication aim to lift listeners to a more spiritual plane, metaphorically presenting devotional concepts from the mystical Islamic tradition of Sufism. Inspired by Persian musical forms that made their way to the Indian subcontinent in the 11th century, qawwali is nothing if not traditional — but it’s also popular: YouTube teems with videos of late qawwali master Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn. Brothers Mehr and Sher Ali studied with members of Kahn’s family. Accompanied by hand-operated harmoniums, with beats set by the percussive tabla, they weave their contrasting voices into rich tapestries of sound. A pre-performance lecture by Islamabad anthropologist Adam Nayyar helps explain the elusive poetry of qawwali — and why Mehr Ali says performing often leaves him in a trance state.