For the Love of Music
In memory of Hayat Ahmed Khan, the man behind All Pakistan Music Conference
By Beenish Pervaiz
Published in The News, 13 February 2005
Last night I wept. A part of me had died. Hayat Ahmed Khan, one of the few promoters of classical music in Pakistan, had passed away after a brief illness.
Awarded Sitara-e-Imtiaz for his contribution in the field of music, Hayat Sahib had set up the All Pakistan Music Conference (APMC) in 1959 which attracted music luminaries and aspiring artists alike to keep the classical music alive in the country. “Hayat Sahib ke saath is shehr ki aik riwayat khatm ho gayee,” (With the passing away of Hayat Sahib, a tradition of this city has come to an end),” says Arifa Syeda, an educationist. “Ek baat ko sach rnaan lena, aur phir usi sach par sari umr qaim rehna Hayat Sahib ki bahaduri ki daleel hai (To believe in something and to pursue it his entire life is a proof of Hayat Sahib’s courage). ”
The Music Conference was a favourite target of the mullas and it had to face other challenges. The period when General Ziaul Haq ruled the country was particularly difficult. Despite the odds, Hayat Sahib made sure the APMC was a regular feature in Lahore, providing a constant source of inspiration to thousands of music lovers from all age groups. With the likes of Roshan Ara Begum, Ustad Fateh Ali Khan, Ghulam Ali, Iqbal Bano and Nayyera Noor performing at the APMC functions.
“I do this purely for the love of music,” Hayat Sahib would say. “When Z.A. Bhutto was the prime minister, he asked what he could do for me. I told him to plant a rose in my house, and he did so.”
Visiting Hayat Sahib on weekends was a routine and a real treat for me. He possessed a great sense of humour, and was delightful company. I remember sitting in his office for hours where he used to narrate his life’s experiences (most of them related to music) in a captivating manner. Hours would pass by and one would not even realize it. “What would you have; tea or coffee?” he would ask. Often, I would say “Nothing”, to which he would reply, “Bring one cup coffee for me, and one cup of nothing for her.”
He was greatly disappointed by the state of pop music in Pakistan, and once related his experience of attending a television programme to mark Roshan Ara Begum’s death anniversary. Someone from the audience had said that pop singers these days danced and acted like monkeys, and to that Hayat Sahib replied, “Bandar ki tazlil mat karein. Bandar ko nachna aata hai” (Do not insult the monkey. Monkeys know how to dance).
Having studied music at the Gandharav Mahahvidyala in India, Hayat Sahib would remark that after so many years, he could only say that he had mastered the art of listening to music and identifying the right sur or note. “Practice for a hundred years, and you would become a star,” he said to aspiring musicians and vocalists in the field of music, and quoted Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan as saying: “After devoting my entire life to music, I am now able to distinguish surs.”
“Miss your riyaz (practice) for a day and you will go back by two days. To be an ustad, you must practise six to eight hours a day, perhaps even longer,” Hayat Sahib often said. “To build my stamina, which is so important for classical singing, I used to hold my breath while walking briskly, While many sing from the throat, when singing a classical tune, one should make sure the voice comes from deep within,”
The APMC programmes, held on a monthly basis, not only enriched the cultural ethos of Lahore, but also kept the dying art of classical music alive in the country. Even while undergoing dialysis in Chicago (a couple of months before his death), Hayat Sahib had called up his daughter Ghazala Irfan (professor of Philosophy at LUMS) and instructed her to make sure that arrangements of the music programme were finalized and that the function started on time, punctuality being extremely important to him. Such was his dedication. I heard six days before his death, he had instructed his staff the monthly musical gathering had to go on, despite his illness. The gathering was indeed a huge success, the performer being one of best sitar players in the world, Ustad Ashraf Sharif Khan.
Hayat Sahib will be missed immensely by music lovers. He was my mentor because he made me a better, more tolerant human being. More than ever, I now understand why some people are larger than life. Hayat Sahib was one of them. And I say this because he made the world a more peaceful place to live in.
