Serving the cause of music

One of the major causes contributing to the decline in the quality and popularity of our traditional music, besides the cultural invasion of our ethos by Western pop varieties, is the dearth of quality literature on melodic arts.
Since August 1947, when the musically enlightened non-Muslim population of Lahore and other cities of Punjab and Sindh immigrated en mass to India, very few books on music have been published in Pakistan either by individual authors or institutions. (The much talked about of Classical Music Research Cell of Radio Pakistan, Lahore has published only one book since its inception in 1976).
Inquisitive music buffs were left at the mercy of generally uneducated professional musicians whose grasp over philosophical, historical and theoretical aspects of Sub-continental esoteric music had left much to be desired.
After independence, the situation in India changed for the better, where scores of books on music both in English as well as regional languages were published regularly every year, making it easier for young aspirants to comprehend the sophistries of this finest of the fine arts.
Production of new literature helped to some extent in keeping the popularity of indigenous music intact.
In Pakistan very little has been written on music or about musicians during the past 58 years, which could enlighten music lovers about the various aspects of music.
The quantum of melodic literature produced thus far in Pakistan does not meet the requirements of a country, which has inherited a rich melodic heritage. The reproduction of Thakur Nawab Ali's immortal Maarful Naghmat by Idara-e-Faroh-e-Fun (managed by classical vocalist Ustad Badaruzzaman) some 35 years ago, which has now become the basic reference book on this subject, did help votaries of music to get themselves acquainted with the fundamentals of this performing art.
Professional musicians with the exception of only a handful also failed in making enough contributions to the flowering of melodic literature in Pakistan. Most of them did not have the required educational background or possessed enough expertise and acumen to write on the art that came to them from generations through a close-to-the-chest tradition, which has caused much harm to music.
The promotional aspect of music therefore became the responsibility of educated connoisseurs, who, depending upon their own priorities in life, chipped in and helped in the production of quality literature on music.In recent years, Pak Arab Refinery Company (PARCO), under the guidance and supervision of Dr Shahid K. Hak, its Managing Director, has published a number of books on music and musicians, whose contents have enlightened many a music buff and connoisseur in Pakistan.Too much reliance on non-practising musicologists in the production of literature has proved counter-productive.
First, very little was written, which could truly educate the people about practical aspects of various genres of music. Two, many wrong notions about music were spawned by a few musically unenlightened but otherwise educated writers, which triggered a number of controversies. Third, practicing musicians erroneously considered them totally absolved of the responsibility of enlightening their compatriots about their art.
Three books entitled A Tribute to The Greatest Composer of Geets - Kamal Dasgupta nay Kamal Ahmed; A Tribute to Pakistan's Greatest Ghazal Singer, Mehdi Hasan and A Tribute to Pakistan's Greatest Folk Singer - Tufail Niazi,. and three CDs containing their compositions, songs and ghazals respectively. have been recently produced by Pak-Arab Refinery Limited, Karachi, One-time practising musician S. M. Shahid arrested in the compilation and editing of these books. Besides their production values, these books contain invaluable information on the lives and works of the three musicians, whose contributions to Sub-continental music are too well known to be reiterated in this piece, these books are informative and a collectors' item.
Bedecked with photographs, the books contain selections of articles in Urdu and English written by musicologists and critics along with transcripts of geets and ghazals recorded in the voices of Tufail Niazi and Mehdi Hasan. These books enlighten the readers about the contributions of selected musicians to the flowering of melodic arts in Pakistan.
The books along with CDs should be sent, if possible, to the libraries of a selected few educational institutions of higher learning in the country for the use and benefit of the students and researchers.No art or an academic discipline can flourish if enough literature is not published about it. One can therefore, hope that such books on music and musicians will continue to publish, which will go a long way in preventing our rich melodic heritage from fading into historical oblivion.