Afghan Music in Exile: Mashhad 2022

Since the Taliban's return to power in 2021, many of Afghanistan's musicians were forced into exile to avoid arrest, torture or worse. This superb release brings together many of those musicians, once respected names in their homeland and now deprived of their livelihoods. Produced by Michel Gasco and Lachlan R Dale, the album was recorded in Mashhad, Iran and is an opportunity for the world to hear the art of Afghan music once again.

The seven tracks are varied and each is outstanding in its own way. Vahid Delahang proves himself a mean virtuoso on ‘Rag Sohni’ and Jawad Tabesh's control of his voice on the classical Afghan song ‘Tarane’ is unreal. The opening folk song by Ustad Amir Mohammad ‘Astan e To Boose Gahe Man Ast’ is brought back to life here by his son Aziz Ahmad Amiri. The rubab maestro Nasim Khushnawaz, who has been in exile in Mashhad since 1996 and whose recent Songs from the Pearl of Khorasan was a Top of the World in November 2022 (#182), is also featured here on ‘Aghrabe Zolfe Kajat’.

“When people think of Afghanistan they think of war,” says Khushnawaz. “I hope after this album they will also think about our beautiful music.”