SUFI QAWWALI
Experience the fervor & passion of Sufi Qawwali music
with internationally renowned ensemble Fanna-Fi-Allah.
Qawwali music is an ancient devotional art form that invokes deep
remembrance of the Beloved through powerful song and dynamic rhythm.
ABOUT US
BUILDING BRIDGES
For over two decades, the Fanna-Fi-Allah Sufi Qawwali ensemble has been the preeminent torchbearer of traditional Sufi Qawwali music on a global scale.
Upholding the art form in its most authentic and time-honored tradition, Fanna-Fi-Allah serves as a vital cultural conduit between the East and the West, championing a message of universal tolerance that is imperative for our current era.
The ensemble has enlightened global audiences with an unparalleled insight into the rich tapestry of Qawwali culture.
Their performances have graced prestigious international festivals and concert stages across the United States, Canada, Pakistan, China, Russia, Europe, Australia, Indonesia, India, and Africa.
THE ECSTATIC EXPERIENCE
Qawwali is a passionate devotional practice in which the fire of divine love (ishq) is ecstatically expressed through the mystical verses of Sufi poets, sung in Urdu, Farsi, Hindi and Punjabi.
The origins of qawwali music date back about a thousand years to the first sufi mystics who came to India. Qawwali has evolved into an immense art form spanning over hundreds of years of poets, languages & musical evolutions.
HONOURING TRADITION
Fanna-Fi-Allah have also been blessed to play Qawwali in its traditional setting at the honoured tombs of Sufi saints in Pakistan and India, where qawwali originates. These include the sacred shrines of: Data Ganj Baksh (Lahore), Baba Ganj-e-Shakar (Pak Pattan), Baba Bulleh Shah (Kasoor), Baba Lasuri Shah (Faislabad) and in India at the tombs of Khwaja Nizzam-Ud-Deen Aulia, Amir Khusrau, Pir Inayat Khan (Delhi), & Khwaja Mueen-Ud-Deen Chishty (Ajmer).
They have published over 10 albums on music labels Tabaruq Records and Buda Musique (France). Their award-winning documentary Music of the Mystics will offer audiences an even deeper glimpse into Sufi culture and the beauty of Qawwali.
MUSIC OF THE MYSTICS
THE QAWWALI DOCUMENTARY
UPCOMING TOURS
WHO WE ARE
TAHIR QAWWAL
Lead Vocal, Harmonium
Tahir Hussain Faridi Qawwal is the group leader & manager. He has studied under vocal masters Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Pandit Pashupatinath Mishra, Ustad Sher Ali Khan, and Ustad Muazzam Ali Khan. He has honed his amazing harmonium skills with Rahat Ali, the first student of Ustad Faruk Fateh Ali Khan. When not on tour, Tahir teaches vocal music & harmonium within the traditional raaga system. He also sings Thumri, Khayal, Kafi & Heer. Check out www.tahirqawwal.com for other projects.
Kash Qalandar is the tabla player of Fanna-fi-Allah. He is a London-based Punjabi, and beyond the tablas, he is also a skilled vocalist and harmonium player, Kash has been classically trained since the age of two by his Ustad Tari Khan, and is very deeply influenced by Ustad Dildar Hussain.
KASH QALANDAR
Tabla & Vocals
LAALI QALANDAR
Vocal & Clapping
Laali Qalandar has been a key member of Fanna-fi-Allah since 2001. He is a passionate & talented vocalist who has travelled many times with the group to Pakistan and India, studying alongside Tahir with the current qawwali masters.
Salim Chishty is well known for his purity of pitch & gamak taans. As well as studying with the qawwali greats, he has also honed his classical vocal skills through years of study with the famous drupad singers – The Gundecha Brothers.
SALIM CHISHTY
Vocal & Clapping
ALI SHAN
Vocal & Clapping
Ali Shan has a qawwali clap & chorus that can travel from one village to another. He has a deep devotion to the group. He also studies the rabab with Ustad Humayoun Sakhi of Afghanistan.
Chetan Ramlu joins our Qawwali ensemble as a harmonium, tabla, and vocal virtuoso from New Zealand. A student of Tahir’s harmonium teacher, Ustad Rahat Ali, Chetan brings refined skill and clear, crisp high notes to our performances.
Chetan Ramlu
Vocal & Harmonium
ABRAR HUSSAIN
Vocal & Clapping
Abrar Hussain hails from Lahore, Pakistan and is the oldest son of the living legend Ustad Dildar Hussain. He adds powerful giras to the music, enriching the poetic content of each kalam. He leads his own qawwali ensemble in Pakistan during the Fanna off season called - Ustad Dildar Hussain & Abrar Hussain.
Aziz Abbatiello is a whirling dervish living in between San Francisco and Turkey, active in the Mevlevi Sufi Order. He trains under Postneshin Jelaluddin Loras, Pir of the Mevlevi Order of America. He also studies with Sheikh Sherif Baba, head of the Rifai Marufi Order. He moves into deep trance with Fanna-fi-Allah’s music, expressing the connection to the divine through dance.
AZIZ ABBATIELLO
Whirling
Anna Whirling is a whirling dervish who lived in Ukraine all her life before the war, when she was exiled to the USA. She met Aziz Abbatiello in Konya, Turkey, and the two are joined on the ecstatic path of peace. Anna is also a teacher of whirling.
FOR BOOKING AND PRESS INQUIRIES
CONTACT
Fanna-Fi-Allah
bookfanna@gmail.com
+44 7852 523278
PRESS
A MESSAGE OF LOVE
Fanna-Fi-Allah seek to represent the music in its traditional, authentic form and are committed to helping spread qawwali's message of love and peace throughout the world.
They are honoured to build bridges for qawwali music in the West, and always relish the opportunity to introduce Qawwali to new audiences.
MILESTONES
PAKISTAN PEACE TOURS
For more than two decades, the members of Fanna-Fi-Allah have been travelling to Pakistan to study with the greats, to perform and to soak up the rich culture. They have become cultural ambassadors in the West, sharing their love of qawwali and helping people to understand Islam and Sufism. In 2013 the group received a grant from the US Consulate of Islamabad to travel through Pakistan. They played at orphanages, schools, universities, concert halls, consulate offices and at important Sufi shrines. In 2014 they received a 2nd grant to tour again, and they brought a videographer to film their journey and interview master qawwals for their documentary, Music of the Mystics
CHALLENGING SOCIAL BARRIERS
Aminah Chishti is well known for becoming the first female tabla player in the history of classical music to perform at Sufi shrines around Pakistan and even India. Aminah was fortunate to be taken in and taught by the greatest qawwali tabla player in Pakistan, Ustad Dildar Hussain, who toured internationally with Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan for 30 years. He defied convention to teach an American female student and has encouraged her in her practice for the last 15 years. Aminah has had the blessing of performing at the shrines of Baba Farid in Pak Pattan, Data Ganj Baksh in Lahore, Baba Bulleh Shah in Kasur, Kalyar Sharif, Meheroli Sharif and Baba Lasuri Shah in Faisalabad.
QAWWALI IN INDIA
Tahir and Aminah began their journey into qawwali music in Ajmer, India back in 2000. Most of the group undertake regular trips there to study classical music and to perform qawwali. They have visited and played at the sufi shrines of Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki (Mehrauli, Delhi), Moinuddin Chishti (Ajmer), Ali Ahmad Sabir (Kaliar), Haji Ali (Mumbai) and their favourite Nizamuddin (Delhi).
In 2016 they headlined the World Sacred Spirit Festival in Jodphur, collaborating with Ajmeri qawwals - Ustads Zakir and Zaki Ali.
UK & EUROPE
It’s been easy to see that people LOVE Qawwali in the UK!!
Fanna-Fi-Allah have performed in Birmingham, Manchester, Burnley, Glascow, Bradford, Luton, London and even Stoke-on-Trent. Qalandar Arts have been an amazing support for FFA.
QAWWAL FAMILY TOUR WITH FFA IN USA
Fanna-Fi-Allah have been honoured to host Ustad Dildar Hussain in the USA on several tours. Aminah's teacher and the greatest qawwali tabla player in the world, Dildar is an important wisdom keeper in the lineage. His sons Abrar Hussain and Israr Hussain also regularly play with the Fanna-fi-Allah and are dear friends of the group. It has been important for U.S audiences to understand more about the tradition through this family.
QAWWALI IN THE 'WEST'
Fanna-Fi-Allah have now toured throughout America and Canada more than any other qawwali group. In this way they have become a 'bridge' to qawwali music in the west. They seek to represent the music in its traditional, authentic form and are committed to helping spread qawwali's message of love and peace throughout the world.
As 'goras' ('whites') they have sometimes come up against some skeptism, but through their studies in the East and their performances worldwide they have proved themselves as accomplished musicians and carrier of qawwali.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES 2001-2019
Fanna-fi-Allah has played over 1500 concerts to date.
USA & Canada
Portland – Phoenix Rose Theatre
Toronto – Aga Khan Museum
San Francisco – Great American Music Hall
San Diego – World Beat Centre
Montreal – Theatre Rouge
Toronto – Harbour Front Centre
Berkeley – La Pena Cultural Centre
San Francisco – San Francisco Civic Centre
Los Angeles – Skirball Cultural Centre
Nevada City – Nevada Theatre
Grass Valley – Centre for the Arts
South Carolina – University of South Carolina
Toronto – Civic Centre
Grass Valley – California World Fest
Seattle – Broadway Performance Hall
Washington D.C. – George Washington University
San Jose – Science & Non-duality Conference
Joshua Tree – Bhakti & Shakti Festivals
New York – Omega Chant Festival
Oregon – Beloved Festival
Chicago – Museum of Contemporary Art
California – Symbiosis Festival
California – Earth Dance Festival
Berkeley – Berkeley World Festival
Sacramento – The Palace Ballroom
Arizona – Tempe Centre for the Arts
Washington D.C. – Lincoln Memorial
Dallas – Jack E Singley Academy Theatre
St Louis – Hilton Hotel
Boston – Chinmaya Mission Temple Hall
Las Vegas – Winchester Cultural Centre
Toronto - Mississauga Living Arts Centre
International
London – Barbican Centre
Mumbai – Royal Opera House
Cairo – Great Pyramids of Giza
Dubai – Nashwan Hall
Delhi – Islamic Cultural Centre
France - Aux Heures D’été Festival
Brussels - Esperanza Festival
Berlin - Lido
Moscow - Stanislavsky Electrotheatre
China - Shanghai World Music Festival
Denmark - Alice in Copenhagen
Paris - Theatre Des Bouffe Du Nord
Jodhpur – Sufi Spirit Festival
Mumbai – Dragah Haji Ali
Bhopal – Taali Ho Sufi Festival
Mumbai – India’s got Talent
Mumbai – Imax Theatre
Indonesia – Bali Spirit Festival
Morrocco – Bibliothéque National de Rabat
Sydney – Bankstown Theatre
Sydney – Paramassala Festival
Brisbane – Woodford Folk Festival
Wellington – New Zealand School of Music
London – Harrow Arts Centre
Glasgow – Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Burnley – Burnley Mechanics Theatre
Bradford – Playhouse Theatre
Birmingham – Midlands Art Centre
London – Brunei Gallery
France - Bout Du Mond Festival
Leicester – The Spinney
Radio
UK - BBC Manchester, BBC Asia Network
Australia - ABC Radio Sydney
USA - KEXP Seattle, KPFA Berkley
Pakistan - T.V.-PTV Lahore; VAQT TV Islamabad, Urdu Voice Washington
India - India's Got Talent Mumbai
India - India Times
Pakistan - Daw, The Express Tribune
USA - Sufi Journal
Australia - ABC News
Fanna-Fi-Allah has performed over 250 sufi shrines throughout India & Pakistan, which is the traditional venue for qawwali.
Some of the most known shrines played to date are: Ajmer Sharif, Kaliyar Sharif, Kasur Sharif, Data Darbar, Pakpattan Sharif, Kaliam Sharif, Sehwan Sharif, Mehroli Sharif, Nizammudin, Bhit Shah, Uch Sharif & Imam Badi