Riyaaz Qawwali and the Harlem Gospel Travelers

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Courtesy of Moss Arts Center at Virginia Tech

Singing Together is a qawwali and gospel music collaboration between Houston-based Riyaaz Qawwali and the Harlem Gospel Travelers from New York City.

Used for centuries to spark religious devotion, qawwali or Sufi music features soul-stirring melodies, lively rhythms, and spiritually uplifting lyrics. Riyaaz Qawwali musicians, who are settled in the United States, hail from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, representing multiple religious and spiritual backgrounds.

The Harlem Gospel Travelers draw deeply on the gospel quartet tradition of the ’50s and ’60s, but with a distinctly modern edge that includes dazzling vocal arrangements punctuated with gritty bursts of guitar and crunchy rhythm breaks.

Each group plays individually, then both collaborate, interweaving qawwali and gospel elements into a resoundingly joyous, boundary-crossing evening of praise.