Fareed Ayaz | |
|---|---|
| Born | Fariduddin Ayaz Al-Hussaini (1952-11-13)November 13, 1952 (age 73) Hyderabad, India |
| Occupation | Qawwal |
| Known for | |
| Awards | Pride of Performance Award by thePresident of Pakistan in 2006 |
Ghulam Fariduddin Ayaz Al-HussainiQawwal (born inHyderabad, India) is a Pakistani Sufi devotional singer.[1][2] He belongs to the well-known family of Qawwals, known as theQawwal Bacchon ka Gharana ofDelhi.[3][4][5]
He and his relatives are the flag-bearers of that school of music (gharana), which is also known by the name of the city as theDelhi gharana. He performs various genres of Hindustani classical music such asdhrupad,khayal,tarana,thumri, anddadra. Ayaz leads the qawwal party with his younger brother,Abu Muhammad Qawwal.[4][6][7]
Fareed Ayaz is a descendant of Mir Qutub Bakhsh, who was awarded the title ofTanras Khan by the lastMughalEmperorBahadur Shah Zafar in the 19th century. Tanras Khan was also the tutor in music and court musician of this emperor.[8][7]
Fareed Ayaz (full name is Ghulam Fariduddin Ayaz Al-Hussaini) was born inHyderabad,India in 1952.[1][5] In 1956, his family shifted to Karachi, Pakistan.[5] He started his training in classical music with his fatherMunshi Raziuddin Ahmed Khan Qawwal. Their roots can be traced to the family tree of one of the earliest disciples ofAmir Khusro.[8][3] Their fatherMunshi Raziuddin Qawwal also used to sing with his cousinsQawwal Bahauddin Khan andManzoor Niazi Qawwal (maternal uncle of Farid Ayaz) early in his career.[1][6][7]
His nephew Hamza Akram is also a qawwali singer.[8]
Fareed Ayaz &Abu Muhammad Qawwal Brothers are popular for theirSufi music performances.[4] They are considered the most popular Qawwal party in Pakistan and one of the few left. They have performed in theUnited Kingdom,Australia,United States,Canada,France,Germany,Italy,Netherlands,Portugal,Austria,India,Bahrain,Kenya,Nepal,Zimbabwe,Bangladesh,Croatia,Turkey,Morocco,Greece,Egypt,Bulgaria,Tunisia,Belgium,Iran,Oman,United Arab Emirates,Saudi Arabia,Jordan,Romania,Mauritius,Hong Kong and South Africa.[2][9][10][11][7]
They also performed atAman ki Asha, organised byTimes of India and Pakistan'sJang Group of Newspapers.[12]
