QAWWALI

Qawwali: translation

Song setting Islamic mystical poetry in Farsi, Hindi, or Urdu. TheQawwalisong begins with an improvisatorypreludeplayed on aharmonium, followed by an introductory verse sung by a professional soloist (qawwal), which gives way to the song proper, a strophic setting of the poem alternating the soloist(s) with an entire chorus ofqawwals, all accompanied by a barrel-shapeddrum, the {}dholak. The drumming suggests the repetition of God’s name and the whole ensemble is intended to arouse the mystical love and divine ecstasy that is the Sufi experience.

Someqawallimelodies are heard wherever the ritual is enacted in Persian and South Asian shrines. Others are restricted to particular shrines or rituals. Others may be composed by theqawwalswho sing them.

See alsoDhikr; Sama; Ta’ziye.