Pakistani Singing Star Arif Lohar at Asia Society, 4/27-28

Asia Society, as part of the 2012 spring season of its series, "Creative Voices of Muslim Asia", presents Arif Lohar, one of Pakistan's Punjab folk singers, for a two-night run, Friday, April 27 and Saturday, April 28, 2012. The concert will cap a five-city U.S. tour, organized by Arts Midwest's "Caravanserai: A Place Where Cultures Meet." In a special collaboration, Arif Lohar will be joined by Brooklyn-based Pakistani songstress Arooj Aftab, whose Signature Sound fuses classical Pakistani and Sufi traditions with contemporary jazz and pop influences. An ensemble of Pakistani musicians will back up Arif Lohar.

 

Lohar has more than 150 albums to his credit and is the recipient of his country's highest civil honor, the Pride of Performance Award. While following the footsteps of his iconic father, Alam Lohar, he is well known for his contemporized interpretations of traditional Punjabi songs, and his music captures the sounds of modern Pakistani, mixing pop and folk stylings. For these rare New York City appearances, Lohar will perform on his chimia (a traditional percussion instrument resembling tongs).

 

This event is presented as part of "Creative Voices of Muslim Asia," an ongoing multidisciplinary series that celebrates the many and diverse ways in which Muslims express their creative voices at the beginning of the 21st century. Launched in 2008, the series aims to put art at the center of bridging the cultural divide between Americans and Asian Muslims. In doing so, it highlights the artistry of individuals while exploring the cultural richness of the Muslim world.

 

 

ARIF LOHAR

Arif Lohar was born in Aach Goch, a small village in a province of Pakistan called Punjab, which has a rich cultural heritage that is more than 4,000 years old. Following the footsteps of his father Alam Lohar (another iconic singer), Arif Lohar has been performing traditional music since his childhood. He is well known for a distinctive style of Pakistani folk music called "Jugni," with lyrics coming from Sufi poetry and spiritual writings, which he sings in his native language of Punjabi. To-date Lohar has more than 150 albums to his credit and has recorded more than 3000 mostly Punjabi language songs. He is without doubt the number one living Punjabi Folk Singer in Pakistan. Worldwide he is among the Top Five Punjabi Folk and Pop Singers. In 2005, he was awarded Pride of Performance Award from Government of Pakistan-the highest civil award in Pakistan. In 2006 he made headlines in the Punjabi music world with his super hit album 21st Century Jugni (Internalmusic UK). Recently in June 2010 COKE STUDIO released his album Jugni COKE STUDIO, which became a smash hit in Pakistan and over the Punjabi music world. Arif Lohar has made more than 50 foreign tours around the world during the last 20 years, including UK, US and UAE. He is the only south Asian artist to perform in North Korea as part of an international delegation of peace and goodwill, performing in front of the current president.

 

AROOJ AFTAB

Originally from Lahore, Pakistan, Arooj moved to the U.S. in 2005 to study Music Production and Engineering at Berklee College of Music. Arooj Aftab pays homage to her cultural roots with inspired original songs that fuse classical Pakistani, Sufi, and South Asian music traditions with contemporary jazz, folk, and pop influences. Her dynamic vocals mesh with subtle, graceful acoustic arrangements to create a Signature Sound that has been described as "indigenous soul." Arooj's debut album is set to release this year, as part of Rebuild Pakistan -- an initiative she created to inspire a global community to rebuild perspective on Pakistan, and to urge the people of Pakistan to actively engage in rebuilding their homeland.

 

Major support for "Creative Voices of Muslim Asia" has been provided from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art, with additional support from the Malaysian Government, Sapura, and Sime Darby.

 

"Caravanserai: A Place Where Cultures Meet" is managed by Arts Midwest on behalf of the U.S. Regional Arts Organizations with financial support from the Building Bridges program of the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art. Caravanserai's film programming is coordinated on behalf of the program by South Arts.

 

Founded in 1956 by John D. Rockefeller 3rd, Asia Society is a nonprofit nonpartisan educational institution. Through exhibitions and public programs, Asia Society provides a forum for the issues and viewpoints reflected in the work of Asian and Asian American artists, and in both traditional and contemporary Asian art and in Asia today. Asia Society is located at 725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), New York City.  www.AsiaSociety.org