Music is a Human Right: Haroon Bacha @ Littlefield – 12/10/09 – Brooklyn

Dec 12, 2009 Reviews
Posted by Q Master

Words and Photos by Quoc Pham

The freedom to express ourselves, our identity and our culture through artistic expression is a right that is often taken for granted in our complacent society. Last Wednesday was the 61st anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and for the occasion, we attended “Music is a Human Right”, a musical event at Littlefield in Brooklyn. The event was organized by Austin Dacey, a human rights activist whom we had the chance to interview earlier that week (Read the interview here).

The event featured Haroon Bacha, a traditional Pashto singer who fled his native Pakistan under the pressure of the Taliban regime. Haroon comes from the north western part of Pakistan, a mountainous region which is home to the Pashtuns, a pacific muslim ethnic group. Like many other Pashto musicians, he has been the prime target of the Taliban’s tragic campaign against popular culture and musical expression considered un-islamic. Even though he is a star in his home country, Haroon Bacha was forced to escape persecution and find asylum in New York City where he now resides. The performance was a tribute to Anwar Gul, another notorious pashto musician who was murdered by a Taliban militia a year earlier.

The evening started out with a reception followed by a brief introduction of the performance. Haroon Bacha then took the stage accompanied by his musicians – masters of the tabla and rubab – and proceeded to play an extensive set of traditional pashto music in a typical formation.   Haroon’s sweet high baritone voice combined with intricate polyrhythms and melodies led the audience into a dancing frenzy. Halfway through his set, he paused and took the opportunity to speak about Pashto culture, peace and tolerance. The evening ended with a set from DJ Rehka of Basement Banghra fame. Overall, it was a very inspiring event and a evening of magnificent music which – as organizer Austin Dacey would say – should not be silenced!

Tags: brooklyn, Concert Review, Human rights, Littlefield