The Rough Guide to the Music of Afghanistan

The music of Afghanistan is something of a cause célèbre for Simon Broughton and here he presents his personal selection of Afghan tracks. Virtually all the musicians featured are still active except for the most important of them all, Ahmad Zahir – the Afghan Elvis,’ who pioneered a new kind of popular music in the 60s.

Traditional instrumental music here comes courtesy of rubab (lute) players Ghulam Hussain, Homayun Sakhi and the late Rahim Khushnawaz [read his obituary in #69] and the sarinda (bowed lute) player Mashinai. Traditional folk songs are featured, sung by the Hazarajat singer Safdar Tawakuli and by Mehri Maftun from Badakhshan; both accompany their vocals with the dambura (long-necked lute). Female singers are represented by Farida Mahwash, the diva of Afghan radio in the 60s and 70s who’s still going strong, and by the celebrated Pashtun singer Naghma. The most recent popular music here comes from global superstar Farhad Darya, and from the young singer Setara Hussainzada. A runner-up in Tolo TV’s third Afghan Star competition, she received death threats merely for moving in a slightly dance-like manner as she sang on TV. What’s missing from the album are examples of the classical music of Kabul’s musicians’ quarter. The inclusion of the Ahmad Sham Sufi Qawwali Group, whose performance is strongly modelled on the qawwali (Muslim devotional) music of Pakistan, hardly makes up for this deficiency and it seems unfortunate that they have a whole bonus CD to themselves. One might also question the inclusion of two tracks each by Mahwash and Farhad Darya, when there is an ocean of other Afghan talent out there.