Qawwali Sufi music was performed at ECO Cultural Institute on October 22, 2014.
The event was organized in collaboration with the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to Tehran and attended by Shamil Aleskerov, the Secretary General of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), Iftikhar Husain Arif, the President of the ECO Cultural Institute, Noor Muhammad Jadmani, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Nair Ahmad Noor, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and Qawwali enthusiasts.
At the outset, Iftikhar Husain Arif, the President of the ECO Cultural Institute, extended his sincere condolence for the demise of great scholar, Ayatollah Mohammadreza Mahdavi Kani, the chairman of Iran's Assembly of Experts, to the Iran's Grand Leader and nation and stated: " He was such a "pious cleric, sincere politician and outspoken revolutionary" who spared no efforts to defend the causes of the Islamic Revolution."
He added: "the leading cleric was a close ally of the founder of the Islamic Republic, the late Imam Khomeini, and played a major role in events that culminated in the 1979 Islamic Revolution".
Introducing Qawwali, the President of the ECO Cultural Institute said: "Amir Khusro Dehlavi is credited with fusing the Persian and Indian musical traditions to create qawwali as we know it today. Qawwali is a form of devotional music in South Asia, mainly in areas of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India."
He expressed his satisfaction for organizing the program and said:" I hope that such an initiative which is in line with the realization of ECI goals and objectives would play a valuable role to better introduce such a worthwhile art to the word".
Further, Shamil Aleskerov, the Secretary General of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), offered his sympathies for the passing of Ayatollah Mohammadreza Mahdavi Kani, and declared: "It is very encouraging that today we hold this ceremony which is another step in promoting the culture of the ECO member states."
"The performance of the ECO Cultural Institute is much appreciated. Our nations attach great importance to the promotion of their culture and literature" he continued.
Noor Muhammad Jadmani, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, also condoled with the government and people of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the great loss of Ayatollah Mohammadreza Mahdavi Kani. Then he expressed his gratitude to the ECO Cultural Institute for cooperation in organizing the Qawwali performance and said: "I look at Qawwali as an excellent medium for connecting the peoples."
"I want to appreciate the efforts of ECI for connecting the ECO member countries, and exposing their culture and traditions" he added.
Later, Badar Ali Khan Group, a Pakistani group of Qawwali performers, staged excerpts in praise of the Prophet (PBUH), Imam Ali (AS) and Imam Husain (AS) which were received well by the audience.
At the end of the ceremony, some awards from the ECO Cultural Institute were presented to the Qawwali performers.