Inspired by birdsong and playing the obscure zither-like benju, the 78-year-old is enjoying a surge in global popularity<\/p>\n
In early 2022, when Daniyal Ahmed set off on a road trip from Karachi in Pakistan into the neighbouring province of Balochistan , his only contacts were a few distant connections who he hoped would lead him to a legendary musician within the region. After circling villages near Pasni, a fishing port on the Arabian sea about a six-hour drive from Karachi, Ahmed by chance spotted Ustad Noor Bakhsh on the side of a lonely road sitting next to his broken motorbike, waiting for help.<\/p>\n
Ahmed is an anthropologist who teaches at Habib University, and had been chasing down masters like Bakhsh in remote regions across Pakistan. Bakhsh was already well known within Balochistan both as a solo benju (a type of zither) player and as Balochi vocalist Sabzal Sami\u2019s accompanist for three decades. Ahmed was alerted to Bakhsh\u2019s talents after he saw a video of him playing circulating on Facebook. A musician himself, he\u2019s invested in amplifying regional talent that has become obscured in a country lacking robust infrastructure to support musicians, especially those who play traditional music.<\/p>\n