Songs from the Pearl of Khorasan

The story of Afghan rubab master Nasim Khushnawaz is as fascinating as it is fraught with unimaginable adversity. Born in the oasis city of Herat – the titular Pearl of Khorasan – he is the son of rubab maestro Ustad Rahim Khushnawaz, whose 1970s recordings with ethnomusicologist John Bailey were pivotal in bringing the rubab to Western listeners. Following the rise to power of the Taliban in the 90s, Khushnawaz was forced to flee Afghanistan to Mashhad in Iran, where he has since resided in exile. Further tragedy struck when Khushnawaz survived a car accident that left him in a coma for several weeks, leaving him with the amnesia that forced him to relearn both his instrument and family.

Khushnawaz’s four-generation lineage of playing techniques is on full exuberant display on this album, consisting of traditional Herati and Khorasani songs, plus three classical Afghan pieces. Opening with ‘Sahargah’, Khushnawaz navigates a maze of additive rhythms and temporal modulations, expertly accompanied by Ramin Ahmadi on tabla. This serves as a microcosm for the rest of the album, the centrepiece of which being the pair of ‘Rag Jog’ and ‘Rag Charukesi’. Each gradually builds and extrapolates, before rising to virtuosic climax, in a way familiar to listeners of Indian classical music. In this recording, Khushnawaz has created not only a flawlessly executed work of artistry, but also a monument to human perseverance in the face of tragedy and oppression.