Concert for a cause: Arieb hits a chord with soulful Sufi music

The diplomatic community treated to alternate genres at a fundraiser for education.

ISLAMABAD:

Under a clear night sky, music enthusiasts roared with applause as musician Arieb Azhar infused his powerful vocals with Shafi Shahbaz’s popular number “Mast Kalandar”.

Members of the diplomatic community at the Turkish embassy seemed mesmerised as they bobbed their heads to the beat. While taking into account the language barrier, Arieb explained the lyrics in English and kept the audience entertained.

The Coke Studio musician offered some background
and translation of the Sufi verses he sang, which served as an ice breaker for the audience.



“I’m singing a song that is part of the poetry of Sufi poet Sheikh Ayaz, in which he tells the world that he is a nomad, a wanderer,” said Arieb, while singing. “I have no homeland, the whole world is my home. Simultaneously, he tries to make people understand that we are all one under the open sky,” he elaborated before breaking into an engaging performance of “Tera koi dais nahi hai mera dais jahan”.



Uzair, a guest at the event, said, “There’s no denying the performer’s powerful vocals but I particularly enjoyed the melodious flute, it was really soulful and sweet.”

Wrapping up his performance on a humorous note with “Hum charsi bhangi hain”, Arieb laughingly said the song was for “those who refused to be a part of the rat race”.



Perform at the event attended by the diplomatic community, including Turkish envoy and his wife (bottom right), at the Turkish embassy. PHOTO: MYRA IQBAL/EXPRESS

 The guests helped themselves to dinner while being serenaded by a line Cuban jazz band that performed some subtle foot tapping jazz numbers.



“We aim to introduce jazz to Pakistan and will be collaborating with local bands of the country and it’ll be interesting to see the fusion it will create,” said Cuban Ambassador Jesus Zenen Buergo Concepcion.

The event was organised by Change in Education in collaboration with the Turkish embassy to raise funds for schools in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 1^st, 2012.