#5094, With The Saami Brothers, In-Studio
The spiritual and spirited sounds of Qawwali music, the Sufi devotional style from Pakistan, go all the way back to the 13th century. And incredibly, the Saami family of Pakistan has kept that tradition going in an unbroken line for almost 800 years. The Saami Brothers belong to the best known Gharana (a system of connection or “house” in Hindustani music) of Qawwali, the Qawwal Bachon Ka Gharana of Delhi, and are the custodians of the traditions of Qawwali and Khayaal of Hazrat Ameer Khusrau and Ustad Taanrus Khan Sahab, (The Aga Khan Museum). The brothers are well-versed in several genres of classical music, such as dhrupad, khayal, tarana, thumria and dadra which they blend during their performances of qawwal and perform in Urdu, Sindhi, Punjabi, Arabic, Hindi, Birj Bhasha, Saraiki and Persian. The Saami Brothers talk about Khayal (a possible translation is “imagination”), which is among the oldest forms of Hindustani vocal improvisation, passed carefully from master to student, generation to generation, (Northwest Asian Weekly). 'Qawwali', Arabic for "utterance", refers to the devotional music of the Sufis, the mystics of the Islamic religion. The term includes both the medium and its performance (Real World). The Saami Brothers perform both Qawwali and Khayaal, in-studio. - Caryn Havlik
They play at globalFEST 2026 in New York on Jan. 11.
Program #5094, With The Saami Brothers (First aired 1/8/26)
ARTIST: Ustad Saami
WORK: Prayer for Peace [1:23]
RECORDING: East Pakistan Sky
SOURCE: Glitterbeat
INFO: https://ustadsaami.bandcamp.com/album/east-pakistan-sky
ARTIST: The Saami Brothers
WORK: Allahu-Allahu [11:58]
RECORDING: Live at WNYC, Jan. 2026
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available
INFO: @saamibrothers on Instagram | Saami Brothers on Facebook
ARTIST: The Saami Brothers
WORK: Man Kunto Maula [16:10]
RECORDING: Live at WNYC, Jan. 2026
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available
INFO: @saamibrothers on Instagram | Saami Brothers on Facebook
ARTIST: The Saami Brothers
WORK: Dhekat Dhekat Naina [13:27]
RECORDING: Live at WNYC, Jan. 2026
SOURCE: This performance not commercially available
INFO: @saamibrothers on Instagram | Saami Brothers on Facebook
ARTIST: Ustad Saami
WORK: Desert Melody [:51]
RECORDING: East Pakistan Sky
SOURCE: Glitterbeat
INFO: https://ustadsaami.bandcamp.com/album/east-pakistan-sky
