Multi-Cultural Performances

Uyghurs’ Muqam song, music and dance is the ancient Uyghur melody type used in the music of East Turkistan. It is a musical mode and set of melodic formulas named after the ancient Uyghur towns of East Turkistan such as Dolan, Ili, Kumul and Turpan. The twelve Muqam include 170 songs and dance tunes plus 72 instrumental pieces. The Muqam combines sung poetry, popular tales of famous figures, and dance rhythms. Listening to the Muqam can be an act of religious meditation, but listeners can also get up and dance to the rhythms of the drums. In 2005, UNESCO designated The Uyghur Muqam as part of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Nachh Manch School of Kathak Dance is a performing arts institution dedicated to preserving, promoting, performing and teaching the North Indian classical dance ‘Kathak’ of Lucknow Gharana. The performance from Nachh Manch School will be Kathak Dance pieces composed on Sufi songs. Out of 7 Indian Classical dance forms, Kathak was the most popular dance form during Mughal period. Sufi songs originated in the Middle East and entered India and flourished during the rule of the Delhi Sultanate. Qawwali is a very popular type of Sufi song created by the Indian poet Amir Khosrow.

Ustad Shafaat Khan, world-renowned classical Indian musician, debuted at the age of 11 in the King’s Lynn Festival opened by the Queen Mother. Since then he has performed worldwide at many prestigious concert halls, music festivals, and universities in India, Pakistan, Japan, Russia, China, Malaysia, UK, Germany, France, and Italy, and other European countries. He has played at events that were inaugurated by numerous dignitaries, including Presidents and Primes Ministers of various countries around the world.

He has shared a television performance with Ray Charles in Germany and recently performed alongside Stevie Wonder at the Bonaroo Festival -- one of the largest music festivals in the United States. He has performed in almost all of the major cities in the US.

Through his music he has helped raise money for various charitable purposes including concerts for world peace, flood victims, disabled children, battered women, and tsunami victims amongst other causes serving those who are in need. 

Maestro Khan, son of Ustad Imrat Khan and nephew of Ustad Vilayat Khan, has enthralled audiences all around the world performing at many prestigious concert halls, festivals, universities, museums, and more. In addition, some of his CDs have been produced by the famous Dr. Deepak Chopra. His unique concert presentations include Indian classical/folk music on sitar, tabla and vocal, Sufi-inspired compositions, and a multicultural fusion ranging from western, classical, jazz, and rock, to pop, flamenco, and African rhythms.

The Mosaic Dance Theater Company will present approximately 90 minutes of arts programming at the Festival scheduled to take place in early October 2023. Collecting dances from the culturally rich artistic traditions of medieval Muslim Spain, North Africa, Turkey, and the Middle East, each dance piece is thoroughly researched, for example, performances that demonstrate the great influence of Muslim culture in the development of Flamenco dance and singing. Pieces will vary from duets to pieces that feature the entire ensemble. 

Hafez Kotain is the CEO and Owner of Hafez Percussion, Inc. He will be taking you on a journey to the Middle East through his percussion instruments. The audience will be introduced to Arab rhythms (iqa’at). Kotain will demonstrate the different hand drums by showcasing how to play simple and complex rhythmic patterns. The performance will culminate with one of Kotain’s compositions.

The Philadelphia Folklore Project (PFP) works to sustain vital and diverse living cultural heritage in communities in our region through collaborative projects, research, documentation and education, prioritizing folk and traditional arts in service of social change. PFP is widely regarded as a beacon for diverse perspectives and work in the fields of folklore, ethnomusicology and applied anthropology. One of only a handful of independent folk and traditional arts nonprofits across the country, PFP provides a model for developing folklore and folklife projects nationwide. They are proud to be considered among the institutions responsible for the founding of the field known today as “applied folklore.” PFP remains at the forefront of cutting edge work dealing with cultural traditions that can often run generations deep in a complex and dynamic city like Philadelphia and its surrounding counties.

This narrative stage program will feature three distinct cultural traditions hailing from the modern-day nations of Indonesia, Mali/West Africa, and Uzbekistan/Tajikistan. Each ensemble will present traditional music and dance genres with interpretation (discussion) that illustrates the traditions’ interfaith roots and history of cross-cultural practice in their places of origin, as well as the diaspora. In this manner, the PFP curated folklife program pays homage to the incredible cultural diversity indigenous to the Muslim world, as well as the important histories of interfaith collaboration when it comes to the performing arts. We offer this program as a source of reflection, education, and inspiration for future peace building initiatives amongst our cultural communities near and far.

Following are the three groups that PFP will present at the Arts & Culture Festival of the Muslim Communities of Philadelphia.