Photos: Khumariyaan Bring Pashtoon Rhythms from Peshawar to Park Avenue

The members of Khumariyaan at Asia Society New York on Oct. 12, 2014. L to R: Sparlay Rawail, Shiraz Khan, Farhan Bogra, and Aamer Shafiq. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
Farhan Bogra (L) on rubab and Aamer Shafiq on rhythm guitar at Asia Society New York on Oct. 12, 2014. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
Sparlay Rawail on lead guitar and Ghungro percussion. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
Farhan Bogra switched to Pashtoon sitar for a handful of numbers in the middle of Khumariyaan's Oct. 12 concert. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
Band members demonstrated traditional Pashtoon dances in an effort to bring the Asia Society audience to its feet. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
Powerless to resist, the crowd was eventually induced to start dancing in the seats. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)
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NEW YORK, October 12, 2014 — Khumariyaan, a instrumental quartet from Pakistan, got an Asia Society crowd to its feet in a concert that was part of a U.S. tour sponsored by the U.S. State Department's Center Stage program. New York Times reviewer Jon Pareles lauded the music as "nimble, vital, and determined."

Khumariyaan hail from Peshawar, near the border with Afghanistan, and their music is deeply rooted in Pashtoon folk tradition. The inclusion of two acoustic guitarists, however, allows them to update that sound for the 21st century; during the concert, guitarist Sparlay Rawail characterized their approach as an "incremental evolution."

Khumariyaan's members are:

Farhan Bogra — rubab and Pashtoon sitar
Aamer Shafiq — rhythm guitar
Shiraz Khan — percussion (Zerbaghali)
Sparlay Rawail — lead guitar and Ghungro percussion

Download the program notes (PDF)

Read the full New York Times review

Video

Watch the complete performance (1 hr., 34 min.)

Watch the post-show Q & A (15 min., 4 sec.)

Khumariyaan's performance is part of the Asia Society's ongoing initiative Creative Voices of Muslim Asia and is also part of Center Stage, a public-private cultural exchange by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and produced by the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) in cooperation with the U.S. Regional Arts Organizations, with additional support from the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation and the Asian Cultural Council. General Management for Center Stage is provided by Lisa Booth Management, Inc.