Pakistani troubadour Arieb Azhar to perform in New Canaan
Scott Gargan

At the age of 19, Arieb Azhar traveled beyond the borders of his native Pakistan, taking in the musical and literary traditions of Sufi poets, Irish balladeers, Croatian gypsies and Punjabi traders.
And, this month, the globe-trotting troubadour is sharing his experiences -- and his music -- with Americans as he continues a U.S. tour that takes him to the Silvermine Arts Center in New Canaan on Sunday, June 24.
Leading a quartet of musicians who play acoustic and electric guitars, flute and tablas, Azhar will perform an eclectic mix of urban, traditional and folk-based songs grounded in Sufi and other humanist poetry from across Eurasia. He sings in Urdu, Punjabi, English and Croatian.
"For me, good music is like a spiritual lesson, something that teaches us how to live and celebrate life," Azhar said in an email. "Political, religious and social borders become irrelevant in the process of seeking completion."
Influenced by the humanist poetry of Pakistani writers Faiz and Sheikh Ayaz, and by the 20th-century revolutionary movements of Latin America, Azhar began his career performing at left wing student functions and political rallies in Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city.
While he was still a teen, he traveled to Croatia just as it was breaking away from Yugoslavia. Spending the next 13 years in Zagreb, the Croatian capital, Azhar was exposed to Balkan and gypsy music. His musical leanings led him to perform on the streets, in pubs and at festivals with musicians from Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Bolivia and Ireland.
In 2004, he returned to Pakistan to immerse himself in the music scene and "to reconnect with my roots," as he explained on his website. He later recorded his debut album, "Wajj," and appeared on Pakistan's Coke Studio, a popular music television series featuring live studio-recorded performances.
Recently, he won the opportunity to perform in the United States for the first time when he was chosen for the U.S. State Department's Center Stage initiative.
Azhar is one of several performing artists and ensembles -- selected from countries as far-flung as Haiti, Indonesia, Mali, Pakistan, Senegal, Syria and Turkey -- to appear in 60 medium- and small-sized towns and cities across the United States.
"This will be our first trip to the U.S. so we're very excited," said Azhar, who kicked off his tour Tuesday, June 19, at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington.
Having been endowed with "a few internal hard drives," culturally speaking, during his travels, Azhar is looking forward to the opportunity to expose Americans to his music, and to expose himself to new sources of inspiration.
Said Azhar: "I find my inspiration amongst those people all over the world who are empathic to the sufferings of life and yet remain hopelessly optimistic; people who light a lamp of their own rather than complain about the darkness of the world, who are able to transform suffering itself into a celebration."