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    Lahore Music Meet - Pakistan's First Ever Music Symposium

    Written by: Momina Mindeel
    Posted on: April 04, 2016 |

    Mai Dhai performing 'Koyal Shor Machaway'

    The second edition of Pakistan’s first ever music symposium – Lahore Music Meet (Mehfil-e-Mausiqi Lahore) – took place on the 1st and 2nd of April at the Alhamra Cultural Complex. The event was a join-up of a large number of talks, music workshops, live outdoor performances, as well as an enormous food court featuring several food start-ups including Khanaybaz, Sarak pay Karak, Maroo Tandoors, and a number of Gol Gappa stalls.

    The central lawn featured live outdoor performances throughout the major portion of both the event days. Although the outdoor performances served as the glue that kept the entire event in place, their unrestricted timings disrupted a number of talks being held simultaneously in the adjacent halls. The event, nonetheless, was one of its kind, and succeeded in attracting a colossal number of music lovers from all over the country.

    Lahore music Meet, Alhamra Cultural Complex, April 2016

    Ali Sethi, Ali Zafar and Zoe Viccaji at the LMM

    The first day of the LMM featured several talks on classical and electronic music, band dynamics, and the impact of contemporary radio. However, the live evening performance by Mai Dhai – a classical folk singer hailing from Tharparkar – headlined the day in entirety. Haroon, Ali Sethi, Tina Sani, the Mekaal Hasan Band and Noori were enough to keep the crowd glued to their seats throughout all the sessions, as the major fraction of the audience comprised college and university students.

    The art gallery, situated adjacent to the central lawn, showcased a curated collection of album artworks of various Pakistani musicians from different decades. The exhibition was titled “Music to my Eyes”, and was curated by Karachi-based illustrators Samya Arif and Sana Nasir, and the photographer Humayun Memon. The description of the collection stated rather clearly that it was “not just a walk through memory lane, but a look at the evolutionary process of the music-based art from vinyls through cassettes and CDs, all the way to how musicians use artwork to promote music on current social media” (from the 1960s to the present year). Unfortunately, despite the unique idea, the gallery – unlike the halls and central lawn – did not have a large attendance.

    Lahore music Meet, Alhamra Cultural Complex, April 2016

    A collection of album artworks of Pakistani musicians over the decades

    The second day was all about concert management, western harmonies, the evolution of music in Pakistan, and more outdoor performances. Zoe Viccaji, Naseer and Shahab and Takatak gave some remarkable performances, complemented by surprisingly pleasant weather in Lahore that day.

    The session “You can’t be Serious: Satirical Music in Pakistan”, moderated by Ali Raza, a professor of History at LUMS, brought to surface the frequent problems faced by our satirists. Ali Gul Pir and Mooroo kept the audience thoroughly amused with their witty and sarcastic humour. The talk formally began when Ali Gul Pir started narrating his early childhood memories of when people would stare at his mother whenever they went out for shopping, and how this reprehensible phenomenon, rather common among Pakistani men, served as an inspiration for his song Taroo Maroo. Throughout the talk, he kept asserting that his music is purely satirical, and hence should not taken in offense. He, along with Mooro, threw light on the lack of satirical music in Pakistan, due to which their work has incited a lot of opposition from the public. Ali Gul Pir confessed that he had actually received life threats due to the eccentric nature of the lyrical content in his songs, but this would not stop him from pursuing his artistic talents.

    The musical extravaganza concluded with a heart-warming performance by Attaullah Khan Esakhelvi, the legendary folk musician.

    Lahore music Meet, Alhamra Cultural Complex, April 2016

    Attaullah Esakhelvi at the LMM

    The Lahore Music Meet is not merely a musical celebration, but a festival aimed at developing a strong musical affinity that would pave the way for future artists and collaborators in the country, and even more importantly, for a much-needed renaissance in Pakistani music.   

     

    All images have been taken from the ‘Lahore Music Meet’ Facebook page.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

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    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
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    January 2021