Music of Pakistan
The Music of Pakistan includes South Asian, Central Asian, Middle Eastern and contemporary Western influences. The genre has adapted and evolved over time in response to shifting cultural norms and global influences.
It has been shaped by Persian, Arab and Turkish traditions among others. Hindustani classical music forms like qawwali and ghazal are popular, as are Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Balochi regional music. Islamization policies during the 1980s imposed strict censorship on music and musical expression. In the late 20th-century and beyond, globalization significantly influenced Pakistani music, with elements of Western popular music merging with local traditions to create contemporary genres.
As of 2015, EMI Pakistan is the country's biggest record label, holding the licenses of some 60,000 Pakistani artists and around 70% of the total music of the country, while streaming service Patari has the largest independent digital collection, with some 3,000 artists and 50,000 songs.
Traditional music
Folk music
Pakistan has diverse folk traditions, with each region reflecting its local culture and language through its musical traditions. These folk traditions are passed down through generations and often form the core of community events, rituals, and festivals, typically celebrating themes of village life, nature, bravery, spirituality, love, longing and separation. Some of the famous folk singers/bands of Pakistan include Zarsanga, Sanam Marvi, Nazia Iqbal, Gul Panra, Raheem Shah, Saieen Zahoor, Abida Parveen, Ghazala Javed, Tina Sani, Musarrat Nazir, Tahira Syed, Laila Khan, Naheed Akhtar, Zeb Bangash, Suraiya Multanikar, Allan Fakir, Alam Lohar, Hadiqa Kiani, Ali Zafar, Haroon Bacha, and Khumarian.Pashto music
music is predominantly found in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. There is a long oral tradition of Pashto folk music, which includes genres such as the charbeta, neemkai, loba, shaan and badala.Charbeta is a highly popular form of Pashto poetry, often epic in nature, focusing on heroic figures and events. It is typically performed at a fast tempo by two or more singers. Neemkai is a type of folk song usually composed by Pashto women, expressing themes drawn from daily life and personal experiences.
Loba is a dramatic form of Pashto folk song, often a dialogue that tells romantic stories or allegorical tales. Shaan is a celebratory song performed during significant life events, such as marriages or the birth of a child. Badala, is an epic poem set to music and accompanied by instruments like the harmonium, drums, and tabla. Although it is a form of folk music, it is typically performed by professional musicians.
Sindhi music
is traditionally performed in two primary styles: bait and waee. The bait style is a form of vocal music, characterized by two variations: sanhoon and Graham. On the other hand, waee is primarily instrumental and often involves the use of string instruments. Waee music is also referred to as kafi and is also found in the neighbouring Punjab. Common instruments used in Sindhi regional music include the yaktaro, narr, and naghara. The themes in Sindhi music often center around Sufism and mysticism.Balti music
According to Balti folklore, Mughal princess Gul Khatoon brought musicians and artisans with her into the region and they propagated Mughal music and art under her patronage. Musical instruments such as the surnai, karnai, dhol and chang were introduced into Baltistan. Classical and other dances are classified as sword dances, broqchhos and ghazal dances.Balochi music
, primarily found in the Pakistani province of Balochistan. Common instruments used in Balochi music include the suroz, donali, and benju. Notable musical forms in Balochi culture include sepad, shabtagi, vazbad and zayirak, which are performed in various rituals.Punjabi music
is rich and varied, showcasing a range of instruments such as the dhol, flute, dholak, and tumbi. The folk music invokes the traditions and tells stories of agricultural life, love, and joy. Famous folklores, such as that of Sassi Punnu, are often the poetic content of Punjabi folk music.Qawwali
One of the most notable genres of traditional Pakistani music is qawwali, a devotional musical form. A key characteristic of Qawwali is its emphasis on improvisation and lyrics derived from Sufi poetry, often expressing themes of divine love, longing, and spiritual devotion. In recent decades, however, Qawwali has increasingly incorporated secular themes into its repertoire.The word "Qawwali" is derived from the Arabic term "qawl", meaning "saying" or "utterance." A session of Qawwali is formally referred to as "Mehfil-e-Sama," as it is considered a form of sama, a Sufi tradition performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice known as dhikr.
Qawwali music is performed by a group of about 8 to 12 musicians, called humnawa led by a principal singer. The performance incorporates various musical instruments alongside hand clapping by the singers. Common instruments used in qawwali include the harmonium, tabla, rubab, sitar, sarangi, and tanpura. In a 2015 profile on the Indian news website Scroll.in, while noting its rising popularity, it was estimated that there were more than 100 hereditary Qawwal parties, many centuries‑old, mostly located in Karachi and Punjab, the total number of individual Qawwals active in the country could thus be estimated between 1,000 and 2,000.
Qawwali gained international acclaim through Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, often hailed as "Shahenshah-e-Qawwali". In 2016, LA Weekly ranked Khan as the fourth greatest singer of all time. One of his most celebrated albums, Night Song, produced in collaboration with Michael Brook, reached number 4 on the Billboard Top World Music Albums chart in 1996 and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best World Music Album in 1997.
Ghazal
The ghazal is a form of poetry consisting of couplets which share a rhyme and a refrain, with both lines of the opening couplet and the second line of each subsequent couplet adhering to the same meter. Etymologically, the word "ghazal" originates from Arabic, where it means "to flirt," and often denotes themes of love and longing in Arabic poetry. File:Faiz,_London_1983.jpg|alt=Faiz Ahmad Faiz|thumb|210x210px|The renowned poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz sought asylum Beirut, Lebanon, during the Islamization regime of General Zia Ul Haq in Pakistan due to his support for Marxism. Faiz was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1962 by the Soviet Union and was also nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature. His ghazals and poetry, known for their blend of political and romantic themes, have been rendered in both traditional and modern musical styles.While traditionally rooted in poetry, the ghazal in Pakistan has evolved to become closely associated with music. The works of renowned poets like Mirza Ghalib, Muhammad Iqbal, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Ahmed Faraz, and Parveen Shakir have seen musical adaptations. Ghazal music originally adhered to the Hindustani classical tradition, employing ragas and talas, typically at a slow, contemplative tempo. In modern times, however, ghazals have seen a fusion with genres such as light classical, jazz, rock, or pop music, resulting in a more contemporary sound that retains the lyrical beauty of its origins.Numerous musicians have made a name through the ghazal genre, including Mehdi Hassan, Ghulam Ali and Tina Sani, and in 2009 in the Indian newspaper Deccan Herald we could read that "in the Indian Sub-continent, Pakistan has the largest number of ghazal singers."
Modern music
The song "Ko Ko Korina" sung by Ahmed Rushdi in 1966 is considered to be the first pop song of Pakistan. The 1980s saw the brother-sister duo Nazia and Zoheb Hassan. Their debut album Disco Deewane, released in 1981, broke sales records in Pakistan and became the best-selling Asian pop album at the time. It also the topped charts in India, Russia, West Indies and Latin America. Another popular act of the 1980s was the pop and rock band Vital Signs, with Junaid Jamshed as the vocalist and Rohail Hyatt as the keyboardist. From the 1980s to the 1990s, they produced many of their highly successful and critically praised albums. Their song "Dil Dil Pakistan" was voted as the third most popular song of all time by a BBC World poll in 2003.However, the 1980s were also the time of rapid political change in Pakistan, driven by the Islamization policies of President Muhammad Zia Ul Haq, who came to power through a coup d'état in 1977. Zia's regime sought to implement a conservative Islamic agenda, which came with strict bans and restrictions on musical expression across the country. Even the song "Dil Dil Pakistan" by Vital Signs, despite, a patriotic anthem, got censored for showing young men in Western clothing. Zia Ul Haq had strongly denounced "western ideas" such as jeans and rock music. The regime also banned music for reasons such as "endorsing alcohol consumption" if lyrics mentioned alcohol, or "obscenity" if a male and female were shown standing close or dancing. This period also saw the closure of all bars, nightclubs, and theater halls in the country, depriving aspiring musicians and bands of venues to perform and earn a living.