DATE: FRI, April 4, 2025
TIME: Pre-Show Conversation at 7:00 PM, Concert at 8:00 PM
General Admission: Front Rows: $45 / Box Seats: $45 / Mid-Section Seats: $30 / Back Rows and Balcony: $20

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Prepare to be moved when Pakistani musicians Ustad Naseeruddin Saami and Zeb Bangash join forces to explore the spiritual healing power of khayal music. Saami, the last living practitioner of a mesmerizing ancient 49-note microtonal vocal scale, is a master of both khayal—a genre of Indian classical vocal music—and qawwali, a form of devotional music performed by Sufi musicians. Saami will be joined by his sons, The Saami Brothers, for this special event that carries forward the family’s khayal and qawwali music legacy.

"The performance wasn’t just about technical brilliance — it felt like an intimate family collaboration, making the traditional music even more meaningful. The brothers, fully in sync with their father, seemed to carry the music alongside him, creating not just a show, but a legacy onstage." - Shriangi Gupta, fnewsmagazine.com
 

Parking Information: Flushing Town Hall has a small parking lot at the rear of the building, which fills up quickly during events. Additional parking is available nearby at:

• PEC Parking – 35-15 Farrington St, Flushing, NY 11354
• The Farrington Parking – 33-66 Farrington St, Flushing, NY 11354

Artist Bios:

Ustad Naseeruddin Saami



Ustad Naseeruddin Saami is a Pakistani classical vocalist of rarely heard depth, power, and presence. He is a master of both khayal (which roughly translates to imagination) and qawwali and the very last living practitioner of a mesmerizing and ancient 49-note microtonal vocal scale that dates back over 800 years. Ustad Saami is a revered figure, known for his rich, resonant voice that he implements like a fine-tuned instrument with devastaFng impact. His contributions to South Asian classical music have elevated him to living legend status, and his performances are not just concerts—they are spiritual events that bridge past and present, connecting audiences across cultural and temporal
divides. Ustad Saami is a skilled teacher, and his two most famous students, the singers Zeb Bangash and Ali Sethi, have helped share his art with new audiences, gaining a beloved and devoted fanbase that spans continents. This first-in-a-lifetime concert will be opened by Zeb Bangash, a Pakistani pop superstar who, under Ustad Saami’s watchful eye, will be debuting a khayal. Ustad Saami will then be joined by the Saami Brothers, his talented sons, who continue the family's musical legacy, for a program of khayal as well as their rarely heard form of qawwal.

The Saami Brothers

Qawwali is perhaps the best known of all Pakistani musical styles. A Sufi devotional form developed in the late 13^th century, at its best, a qawwali concert builds and builds as the group, (or party) use call and response vocals, hand claps, percussion and drone instrumentation to elevate audience and artists to a nearly hypnotic transcendence. Few qawwali’s match in artistic depth and fervor of that of the Saami Brothers Qawwali. The Saami Brothers belong to the best known Gharana (a system of connection or “house” in Hindustani music) of Qawwali, the Qawwal Bachon Ka Gharana of Delhi. This Gharana, approximately 800 years old dates to the earliest days of the form, and the Saami Brothers carry on a style of Qawwali much deeper and closer to the origins creation than is what is often heard in the U.S. 

The brothers have total mastery over various genres of classical music, such as dhrupad, khayal, tarana, thumria and dadra which they blend beautifully during their performances of qawwal and perform in Urdu, Sindhi, Punjabi, Arabic, Hindi, Birj Bhasha, Saraiki and Persian. 

Zeb Bangash



Zeb Bangash exploded on the Pakistani and Global music scene in 2008 one half of the genre-defying music duo Zeb and Haniya. When the late Haniya left Pakistan in 2014 Zeb continued to create music with sounds rooted in Central Asia, the Middle East and Western jazz, blues and pop. Zeb sings in Urdu, Pashto, Punjabi, Turkish, Persian, Saraiki and has recently worked with Indian musical hero A.R. Rahman as well as composed songs for numerous films. She has been studying under Ustad Naseeruddin Saami for well over a decade and this dedicated practice has deeply informed her artistic and creative expression. 



This concert is presented in partnership with the District of Raga and the Center for Cultural Vibrancy.