Concert Qawwali in Canada

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Call Us 832-875-4139
Call Us 832-875-4139
Welcome to Riyaaz Qawwali
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About Riyaaz Qawwali
The art of qawwali, as with most of the great
Asian musical and literary traditions, is
transmitted orally ... The vehicle of music is
used to bring one closer to the experience of the
inner truth. Riyaaz qawwal will dwell on certain
words to give them a wider context creating great
depth in the apparently simple language ... He
will often repeat a phrase or sentence indicating
both the obvious and hidden content by
emphasizing or ruminating upon particular words
and syllables, taking the audience into the
discovery of hitherto obscure meanings. Thus,
mundane objects are embued with deeper meaning
a spinning wheel becomes the wheel of life.
Qawwali is a venerable yet refreshing musical
tradition that dates back to the late 13th
century. The word qaul refers to an "utterance
(of the prophet)" and the first Qawwals (qawwali
artists) repeated these qauls by making them the
subject matter of their qawwalis.
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Qawwali Night
Experience the best Qawwali by Riyaaz Qawwali in
USA. Riyaaz Qawwali is open to public, private,
and commercial events in a hope to widen the
reaches of Qawwali.
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With a harmonious blend of South Asian and the
Western influences, Sonny K. Mehta leads the
ensemble as the artistic director for Riyaaz
Qawwali. With over 24 years of classical music
training, he  has spent half of that time devoted
to understanding and growing an awareness of
qawwali. With fluency in Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi
and English, he is well suited to be a cultural
ambassador and take a very secluded/folk art form
(as well as the associated poetry) to the Western
audiences and the newer South Asian generations.  
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Riyaaz Qawwali Events
For 2017 events and availability, please reach
out to us via the contact page. For safety
reasons, we are not pubically updating our
schedule. 2016 Jan 16 Ragapalooza 2016 Houston,
TX - March 4 Private Event Tyler, TX - March
5 Islamic Relief Houston, TX TBD March 16
Eastman School of Music Rochester, NY - March
17 Garrison Institute Garrison, NY - March 19
Robert Browning Presents at Roulette Downtown
Brooklyn, NY 30 April 2 Private Event
Houston, TX - April 9-10 Getty Museum Los
Angeles, CA - Apr27-30 Festival International
de Louisiane Lafayette, LA - May 14 Glory of
Hyderabad Chicago, IL 25 July 9 Eid Private
event Dallas, TX - Aug 28 A Night with Riyaaz
Qawwali Edison, NJ 85 Spt 10 MDA Fundraiser
Houston, TX TBD Spt 16-17 Lotus Festival
Bloomindton, IN - Oct 8 Oberlin College
Cleaveland, OH -
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Educational Tours

• In collaboration with museums and academic
  institutions, Riyaaz Qawwali ensemble plans
  state/regional tours showcasing qawwali across
  several cities. The goals of this initiative are
  to
• showcase the qawwali musical heritage
• experience an authentic and traditional
  performance with English commentary
• explore the poetry often used in the qawwali
  genre
• understand the cultural context of this and other
  under-represented folk art forms of South Asia
• shed new perspective on the philosophies and
  literary themes prevalent in India and Pakistan
• Tours currently being planned
• Texas- November 2017. This includes a University
  engagement.
• Massachusetts- January 2018. This includes a
  University engagement.

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• Completed Tours
• New York - November 2014. This included concerts
  at both Columbia University and Princeton
  University.
• Lost Angeles- June 2015.  This included  concerts
  at The Live Oak Festival in Santa Barbara. 
• New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland- October
  2015.  This included the Richmond Folk Festival,
  Richmond Elementary School, Colgate University, a
  residency at Lafayette College and other public
  performances.
• New York- March 2016.  This included a University
  of Rochester engagements and concert at The
  Garrison Institute.
• California- April 2016.  This included concerts
  at the prominent Getty Museum in LA. 
• Louisiana- April 2016.  This includes concerts at
  the Festival International de Louisiane.
• New York, New Jersey- August 2016.  This includes
  public and benefit concerts.
• Ohio- October 2016. This includes a University
  engagement.
• Florida- March 2017.  This includes University
  engagements and public concerts.

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Contact Us
16910 Hidden Treasure, Friendswood TX 77546
Phone Number 832-875-4139
Website http//www.riyaazqawwali.com/
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