An Introduction to Qawwali Music

Date: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 | 8 pm
Price: $10
Location: Small World Music Centre (180 Shaw St. Toronto, ON)

SOLD OUT

Qawwali is the most popular Sufi devotional music from South Asia and, in recent years, has gained increased attention from worldwide audiences. Despite its popularity, upbeat rhythm and emotional appeal, qawwali's origins and lyrics are shrouded in mystery. 

Join Umair Jaffar at the Small World Music Centre, as explores the genre and its history, and demystifies the hidden messages in its poetry.

Umair Jaffar is the CEO of Small World Music. Since immigrating to Canada in 2014, he has held curatorial roles at the Aga Khan Museum and Harbourfront Centre. Prior to his arrival in Canada, he was the CEO & Artistic Director of IPAC (Institute for Preservation of Art and Culture), a Pakistan-based non-profit social enterprise focused on developing sustainable solutions for preserving and promoting indigenous, folk, and traditional performing arts — the first of its kind in the country. He has conducted extensive fieldwork in Pakistan to document sacred and spiritual music, with a focus on Qawwali. He pursued his formal research in cultural anthropology and ethnomusicology on Qawwali in contemporary Pakistani society at Oxford University.

The Art of Devotion

This performance, presented by Small World Music and the Aga Khan Museum, is part of the Art of Devotion series — an exploration of Qawwali music.

Don't miss the rest of the series:

Saami Brothers Qawwali
May 18 | Off-Site Performance | Toronto Metropolitan University Theatre
Tickets From $30 | Reserve Tickets

Reflections on Khusrau and Kabir: Featuring Ustad Naseeruddin Saami and Ramneek Singh
May 17 | Live Performance | Aga Khan Museum
Tickets From $45 | Reserve Tickets

About Small World Music

For more than two decades, Small World Music has been celebrating cultural diversity and showcasing a range of local, domestic, and international talent to audiences across the Greater Toronto Area. Their vision goes beyond simply presenting culturally diverse artists to include finding ways of working with, showcasing, and supporting underrepresented, marginalized, and newcomer professionals onstage and behind the scenes to encourage sustainable careers and become a leader in the music industry.

Small World Music thanks their Community Partners Virasat and Tawoos Initiative. 

The 2024 Small World Music Series is sponsored by TD Bank Group through the TD Ready Commitment and funded by the Government of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, and the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council.

The Museum’s Performing Arts programming is generously supported by the Nanji Family Foundation.