Renowned shehnai player Ustad Abdullah Khan passed away in Hyderabad on Sunday. He was 72. The veteran instrumentalist had been ill for some years. He hailed from Kotri, Sindh, and is survived by his wife and son.
Classical music producer Shareef Awan termed the death of the shehnai player a great loss for the musical scene of Pakistan. Talking to The News, Awan said the late shehnai player was the last shehnai player of the country who would play classical raag on the instrument.
He added that some musicians in Pakistan still play a type of the shehnai in Punjab called ‘Tota’ but they play folk tunes, not the classical music, on it. Awan said Ustad Abdullah was a kind soul who wanted to preserve the tradition of shehnai. He remembered talking to Ustad Abdullah on the death of the legendary shehnai player from India Ustad Bismillah Khan.
Ustad Abdullah, he said, was sad at the passing of Ustad Bismillah, but he did not express despair regarding the future of the shehnai, stressing that the shehnai had not died with Ustad Bismillah.
One of the favourite raags of Ustad Abdullah was a rarely heard melody ‘Chandraprabha’, which he also played around two years ago at the All Pakistan Music Conference in Karachi. In recent months, Ustad Abdullah gave a public appearance in Karachi at the condolence reference for tabla player Ustad Bashir Khan at the Arts Council of Pakistan. He seemed feeble and could walk only with the support of two persons.
