An extreme form of political censorship of music in Afghanistan not only threatens the life of musicians but also the very survival of Afghan musical traditions. Many artists have fled the country to seek refuge in Europe, North America, Iran and Pakistan. In Afghanistan, the sound of music has vanished and its transmission is severely interrupted. In an impulse lecture, Marko Kölbl will discuss the ban on music in Afghanistan, its impact within the country, and introduce Afghan artists and their music practice in exile, offering perspectives from various parts of the world. Moderated by Arieb Azhar, a follow-up discussion will then reflect on the situation of Afghan musicians in exile from an global perspective and assess urgent needs for Afghan artists and strategies in safeguarding Afghan musical practices outside the country.
I recently met Marko when he visited Lahore. I sang for him and he played the piano for me and my family. I also gifted him a copy of my book A New Explanation for the Decline of Hindustani Music in Pakistan.
Probably the Holy book and accepted religious practices don’t allow music.
That’s not strictly true. Yes, there is debate in Islam about whether music is “haraam” but there is no blanket prohibition as such.
I explored this issue quite a bit in my M.Mus dissertation. Al Ghazali argued that the appropriateness of music depends on time, place and associates.
I will also note here that most founders of Hindustani classical gharanas were Muslim. This is something that Pandit Bhatkhande noted and lamented.
If you are sincerely interested in this issue, I would urge you to read Lois Ibsen Al Faruqi’s article “Music, Musicians and Muslim Law” which I cited in my research.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/833739
I will also note here that most founders of Hindustani classical gharanas were Muslim. This is something that Pandit Bhatkhande noted and lamented.
I feel like this needs to be put in context.
While true that most Hindustani gharanas had Muslim founders, these founders were almost all recent converts belonging to high castes who were already engaged in the arts. Medieval Indian Muslim clergy was not very friendly to the idea of Muslim rulers patronizing non-Muslims and so these artisans had on other option but to convert to continue their craft.
Hindustani music is intrinsically Hindu and I don’t see how conservative strands of Islam would look favourably upon it even if it was practiced by Muslims.
“Hindustani music is intrinsically Hindu”–
You are on very weak ground arguing with me on this. Please remember I have a Masters degree in Ethnomusicology. I presume you don’t have such qualifications.
Hindustani music is part of the syncretic Indo-Islamic culture. Hazrat Amir Khusrao is its patron saint. Khayal was developed in the Mughal courts (Hint: Khayal is a Persian word).
I have written about Pandit Bhatkhande here:
https://kabiraltaf.substack.com/p/bhatkhande-the-contradiction-of-musics?
I will also note that this is my thread so you may not want to take an argumentative tone with me.
+1
You are the resident Ethnomusicologist of BP; even if you go on appealing to Colonial Authority 🙂
Thank you.
I find it really bizarre when people want to argue with me on something that I have a degree in and they don’t.
lol a Muslim is a Muslim; whether Sayyid or convert..
You have contradicted yourself
All good things are Hindu – all bad things are Muslim..
🙂
STOP commenting on my threads.
What part of being banned do you not understand?
do you mean this?
were they?
Is this a revivalist influence from Deobandi school of thought or reflective of older schools of Islamic practice and jurisprudence?
There has always been a debate about whether music is “haraam” or not. As I mentioned above, Al Ghazali noted that the appropriateness of music depends on time, place and associates.
On the other hand, supporters of music point out that God revealed the Psalms to the Prophet Daud (David) who sang them accompanied by a musical instrument. So music cannot be by definition “haraam”.
Also, the azaan is not considered music though according to Western definitions it obviously is–it has pitch and rhythm.
Maulana Maududi was very against music and associated it with the indulgences of a sybaritic elite. He wrote: “For them music was a regular need, to satisfy which another army had to be secured, of musicians, dancing girls, drum-beaters and manufacturers of musical instruments”
For those interested in this subject, I would really recommend reading the article “Music, Musicians and Muslim Law” by Lois Ibsen Al Faruqi, which I’ve linked above.
I would note that the average Muslim is not against music. Qawwali is a major part of Islamic rituals in Pakistan.
So basically pre Madaudi Afghanistan had its own music tradition similar to Qawalli?
Maulana Maududi was not Afghan. He was Indian (later Pakistani).
I don’t actually know very much about Afghan music since it’s not my area of specialization. My dissertation was on Hindustani classical music in Pakistan.
John Baily is probably one of the most well-known ethnomusicologists specializing in Afghan music
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Baily_(ethnomusicologist)
[…] a follow up to some comments on the thread on Afghan musicians, I am sharing this brief history of Hindustani […]