Arieb Azhar

Arieb Azhar (born 1972) is a Pakistani musician. He is a singer of Sufi poetry and a folk singer.[1][2][3][4]

Arieb Azhar
اریب اظہر
Born
Arieb Azhar

(1972-06-30) 30 June 1972
Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan
OccupationMusician
Years active2006 to present
Known forFusion of Pakistani Folk music with European music influences

Early life

Arieb Azhar was born on 30 June 1972 at Rawalpindi, Pakistan.[3] He is the second son of Aslam Azhar. Aslam Azhar is widely considered to be the "father of Pakistan Television" due to his pioneering work in the early years of television in Pakistan after its introduction in the country in 1964.[3][5]

While Aslam Azhar was busy establishing Pakistani television in its initial stages, his young son Arieb Azhar was exposed to many prominent Pakistani folk singers and classical musicians who used to frequent their home. His parents also used to play a lot of eastern and western classical music at home. So Arieb Azhar got exposed to all this great music and developed an appreciation for it. He is at ease and fluent in both Urdu and Punjabi languages.[3]

Coke Studio (Pakistan) artist

He is best known for his Husn-e-Haqiqi song at Coke Studio (Pakistan).[4][6] He has spent 13 years of his life in Zagreb, Croatia receiving higher education there and returned to Pakistan in 2004 to reconnect with his Pakistani roots.[3][4][7] His first album, Wajj, released in 2006, consisted of eight tracks, in which he vocalized the classical lyrics of Sufi poets like Khawaja Ghulam Farid, Bulleh Shah, Mian Muhammad Bakhsh, and even the contemporary lyrics of Sarmad Sehbai.[4]

Collaboration with other musicians

In 2012, Arieb Azhar was planning a trip to England, sponsored by the British Council, Karachi to go and work together with an eminent English folk singer Martin Simpson with the purpose of fusing Celtic and South Asian folk and classical music together to create a fusion on a 'soul' level. Arieb Azhar said in an interview in 2012, "Martin and I are trying to come up with music together in a very natural and organic way where we are playing off each other's music 'feel' ".[1]

One of Arieb Azhar's interests is to mix urban and folk-based songs with lyrics from Pakistani Sufi poets while making use of other Eurasian influences he has absorbed along the way.[2] Sometimes Arieb Azhar has been called a melting pot of musical and artistic influences.[4]

  • Husn-e-Haqiqi, Noor-e-Azal (2006)[4]
  • Na Raindee Hai
  • Mori Araj Suno along with ghazal singer Tina Sani[4]
  • Loey Loey Bhar Lay Kurriye (lyrics by the Sufi poet Mian Muhammad Bakhsh)
  • The Journey Within (documentary) (2015)
  • Reclaiming Pakistan (a short documentary) (2016)

References
  1. Sher Khan (12 October 2012). "In Pakistan, 'Sufi' is used for anything: Arieb Azhar". The Express Tribune (newspaper). Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  2. "Arieb Azhar profile". The Kennedy Center, Washington D.C. website. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  3. Zunaira Afzal (17 November 2017). "In conversation with Arieb Azhar". The News International (newspaper). Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  4. "Season 10 Artist - Arieb Azhar profile". Coke Studio (Pakistan) website. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  5. Javed Jabbar (1 February 2016). "'Createlevity' – Aslam Azhar's distinctive abilities [1932-2015] – Paying tribute to Aslam Azhar, the man who gave us PTV". Dawn (newspaper). Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  6. "Tracks by Arieb Azhar". BBC Music website. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  7. "Something Kuch Khaas about Arieb Azhar". Youlin Magazine. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
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