KARACHI, July 6: Giving a multimedia presentation on Indo-Pakistan classical music on Saturday night, musicologist S M Shahid, not only introduced the audience at the Pak-American Cultural Centre auditorium to the finer points of sub-continent music, but also underlined the need for conserving it.

He was ably assisted by leading Sitar player, Nafees Ahmad, who played the stringed music instrument with such facility and elan that many people in the audience were heard whispering to one another that Nafees had outperformed himself.

Nafees was, in turn, assisted on Tabla by serious-looking Ustad Bashir Khan, who played the percussion instrument with great self-confidence and aplomb. Ustad Bashir is too skillful to indulge in the usual theatrics of Tabla players — violent tossing of head during what, in technical parlance, is known as Jugalbandi and frequent sprinkling of powder on the Tabla.

Talking briefly about his mentor, Ustad Wilayat Ali Khan, Mr Shahid spoke about the difference between Eastern and Western music systems. “Music in the West has a written tradition. Of course, it is created in the mind first, but it is written out in staff notation, and while presenting this music the musician reads from the score. Western music is also harmonic. Harmonic music has simultaneous sounding of notes. It is vertical. As against this, Eastern music has an oral tradition and it is melodic in form. It is not written and the succession of notes, varying in pitch, has a recognizable shape. It is horizontal.”

Nafees gave a practical demonstration of the Raags that Mr Shahid touched on. With great verve and vitality, he plucked the strings of his Sitar when called upon to play Aiman of Kalyan Thaath; Behag, Khushik Dhani and Durga of Bilawal Thaath; Jaijaiwanti and Des of Khammach Thaath; Gunkali and Ahir Bhairon of Bhairon Thaath; Jaunpuri of Asavari Thaath; and Malkaus of Bhairween Thaath.

The two-hour performance of vocalist Naseeruddin Sami was a treat for all the music lovers in the audience. Naseeruddin belongs to an illustrious family of musicians. It is said that 12 disciples were taught music by Amir Khusrau. One of them, Mian Samat, became leader of the group. Afterwards, this group came to be known as Qawal Bachchay.

PACC Programme Director Asma Ahmad shocked the audience when she made some disparaging remarks about Ustads. Even Mr Shahid, whom she had declared to be better than Ustads, came to the rescue of Ustads, pointing out that he, too, had learnt classical music from an accomplished Ustad. Referring to the remarks indirectly, Nafees afterwards posed a paradoxical question to the audience. He said: “On your way home, I want you to reflect on this question: did Ustad Barey Ghulam Ali do the right thing by leaving Pakistan?”