World-renowned musician from Pakistan, performer of Sufi sacred Qawwali music. Considered one of the best singers in the world, with a voice spanning 6 octaves, Ali Khan could sing at high intensity for hours without a break. Nusrat Fate Ali Khan made a significant contribution to the popularisation of Sufi music in the world.
Biography
Nusrat Fate Ali Khan was born in Faisalabad, the fifth child and the first son in the family of qawwali singer, musicologist Fate Ali Khan. The Khan family has been performing kavali music for 600 years. Nusrat Fate also began his musical training from a young age, playing the tabla and attending classical singing (khayal) lessons. In 1964, Nusrat's father died and his uncles, Salamat and Mubarak Ali Khan, took over his teaching.
In 1971, Nusrat Fate Ali Khan became the leader of the family's qawwali group. The group was named Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Mujahid Mubarak Ali Khan & Party. They debuted at the Pakistan Radio Festival and later composed the hit song Haq Ali Ali. He signed a contract with the British record label Oriental Star Agencies and toured the UK.
The singer met the renowned British musician Pyter Gabriel and in 1985 contributed to his album Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ. With Canadian producer Michael Brook, he recorded the albums Mustt Mustt (1990) and Night Song (1996), and contributed to Dead Man Walking, Natural Born Killers, Bandit Queen, and various Indian and Pakistani films. Nusrat Fate Ali Khan's solo albums have been released by Pyter Gabriel's label Real World Records.
Nusrat Fate Ali Khan played at the University of Washington's Department of Ethnomusicology from 1992-1993, and has participated in the WOMAD World Music Festival and many other events. In 1997, his album Intoxicated Spirit was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Traditional Music Album.
In 1997, Nusrat Fate Ali Khan was admitted to hospital in London due to a kidney problem, where he died a few days later from a heart attack. His body was buried in Faisalabad.
Nusrat Fate Ali Khan released 125 albums during his career and is considered the greatest qawwali singer of all time. He was awarded the President of Pakistan's "Artist Award" in 1987, the UNESCO Music Award in 1995 and the Montreal Film Festival Award in 1996. Posthumously listed as one of Asia's top performers, listed by National Public Radio as one of the world's best voices, listed by CNN as one of the top 12 music icons of the last 50 years.
The singer has been the subject of 5 documentaries and dozens of concert films.
