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    THE BUDDING MAESTROS OF PAKISTAN - LUMS MUSIC FESTIVAL

    Written by: Syed Abbas Hussain
    Posted on: April 16, 2013 | | 中文

    Energy levels were soaring high, the atmosphere was entrancing. Lahore’s renowned Lums University was booming with tantalizing voices and instruments.  The two day event gave a platform to the indigenous voices from Pakistan’s young generation, some of whom exuded incredible potential.

    Budding musicians from across Pakistan congregated at the ‘Lums Music Festival’ to exploit the opportunity of showcasing their talent as well as attending workshops given by some of the prominent names of the country’s musical fraternity. Participants included universities and schools such as Beacon house University, Lahore Grammar School, Virtual University, NUST and Punjab College among others, in addition to private participants.

    The competition was flagged by solo vocalists competing in the ‘Eastern Music’ category. They sang a variety of songs, ranging from Pakistani pop and rock to Bollywood love ballads. While some were supplemented by instruments others performed without them. The ‘Western Singing’ competition, along the same format, followed suit.

    Budding musicians imbibed their mentors’ pearls of wisdom about their craft and the tricks and trades of the world of music.

    Omair Jaswal of Qiyaas fame whose song Charkha Naw Lakha met with resounding success in the last season of ‘Coke Studio’, delivered the first workshop of the event.

    He spoke of the various styles of singing including his trademark rasp and archetypical howl. He chronicled his journey as a musician and the setbacks he had to face, issuing caveats to audience members about certain misconceptions which according to him some prospective musicians harbor.

    The session was interactive in nature and successfully engaged the audience. Questions were posed to audience members about the different modes of singing and they were asked to individually demonstrate what they knew about the skills in question.

    Some exercises involved the audience members as a whole; attendees did a vocal practice in unison to prolong the ability to carry one’s voice in a note.

    Musical maestro Meekaal Hassan gave the second workshop at the festival. He was accompanied by Zain Ahsan, the guitar player of the popular new band ‘Poor Boy Rich Boy’.

    Meekaal deconstructed the various genres of music and shared some of his musical inspirations as well as his perspectives on adopting music as a profession in Pakistan. The founder of the ‘Meekal Hassan Band’ is one of the few musicians with a degree in music. He laid out an in depth and profound analysis while touching upon his experiences at the prestigious Barkley College and how that shaped his musical sensibility and career. Meekaal along with Zain Ahsan also outlined the specifics regarding the use of the guitar, amplifier and the various technical aspects of performing and recording music. All in all, the discussion based workshop was conducted in a way that the queries of audience members steered the session.

    Fans of singer Ali Hamza ( from the band Noori) had disappointment in store for them as he was scheduled to do a workshop but unfortunately had to excuse himself at the last minute owing to an accident which took place onstage during one of his concerts.

    Music was in the air as the campus reverberated with the melodies of guitar strings and harmonious voices; a musician’s heaven it was indeed. In between breaks, clusters of participants were diligently doing vocal exercises and practicing their allocated songs at various nooks and corners of the college campus, at times helping fellow contestants with their songs and jamming with them; under the trees, outside the canteen and by the cloisters.

    There were three rounds of the competition for the three categories; Solo Eastern Singing, Solo Western Singing and ‘Battle of the Bands’.

    In the last round, three chosen finalists performed on a large open air stage in front of a crowd. Maeen Abbas Syed from the Lahore Grammar School- Paragon Branch, won the prize for the best Eastern vocalist, Parizae Azhar for the best Western vocalist and Aitchison College won the ‘Battle of the Bands’.

    Maeen Abbas in particular stood out for his awe-inspiring, mellifluous rendition of semi-classical numbers including a rousing track originally sung by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan called Sun Charkhay Dee Mithee’ as well as the  band Fuzon’s popular song ‘Khamaaj.’ The 18 year-old’s maturity of voice and command over notes marked by dextrous variations, incredibly impressed the judges and audience members alike.

    The ‘Battle of the Bands’ was a charged up affair with musicians grooving to rock music whilst audience members swayed, hooted and clapped along.

    A concert by Meekal Hassan Band was the perfect ending to the power-packed event which managed to bring together a diversity of young artists with tremendous fire in the belly.

    These young musicians presented an encouraging prospect for the future of Pakistan’s music industry. The LUMS music society pulled a commendable feat in promoting the dynamic young talent of Pakistan in a systematic manner.

    Click for videos of the festival:

    https://vimeo.com/63980657 - Maeen Abbas

    https://vimeo.com/63959066 - Mekaal Hasan Band

    https://vimeo.com/63930007 - Ali Gul Pir


    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.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    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
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021