Celebrating Pakistan's History, Culture, and Music

On Thurs., Oct. 6, The Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire presented "Pakistani Music: Its Context, Meaning, & Sound" in the Heritage Commons, Samuel Reed Hall Hall at Plymouth State University.

The presentation was part of The Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire's "Caravanserai: a place where cultures meet," a six month exploration of Islamic culture in Pakistan.

The presentation was led by Beena Raza, and it was intended to help people think about – and understand – Pakistani and Islamic culture, including music and art in new and different ways. Raza is the best known female sitar player in Pakistan and is also an educator. Her heritage and passion for music inspire her to spread awareness about Pakistani arts and the history of Sufism.

Raza began the event as an informative historical overview of five thousand years in Pakisan, and addressed the roots of the term Caravanserai in regards to Pakistan. She explains this by referencing the numerous invaders and conquerors of Pakistan. She explains the Aryans' early movement in Pakistan and the evolution of Hinduism as well as the arts that would result from the religion, saying that, "With Hinduism, we see the genesis of music."

Pakistan was subject to mass cultural immersion with the coming of the Huns, the Greeks,  the Aryans, and eventually the Muslims. "Society was never static; it was always in a state of dynamic evolution," Raza said as she concluded the historical piece of her presentation.

The direction of the presentation went from the historical context of Pakistan to the modern Sufi music and expressionism. Raza said, "Sufism came to Pakistan with the ways of love and peace. Not the brand of Muslim we see today."

The central focus of Raza's presentation was the peaceful, artistic music of Pakistan, a side of Muslim culture in Pakistan that Americans rarely see.

"Sufism and music is about knowledge and wisdom," Raza stated. The musical and artistic genesis in Pakistan started with the coming of Hinduism and has been a huge piece of Pakistan culture since. "Pakistani music is full," Raza said, "our music is very melody based, it's very linear." Classic Pakistani music is full of harmony; lyrics are generally inspired by the people's love for Islam. Pakistani music that is inspired from Western musicians tends to be structurally similar to Western songs that Americans are familiar with.  Raza also said that, though the performers are trained musicians, they write none of their music down like Western musicians do. While the music is symbolic of Pakistani culture, Raza says it is also a way to "showcase how human beings can connect."

Videos of Pakistani musicians were then shared at the end of the presentation, some of which were very traditional while others had some obvious Western influences. A video of Raza playing sitar with her sister was also shared with the audience. Raza then initiated a question and answer session and was happy to share her historical knowledge and passion for music with anyone willing to participate.