Pakistan is an Islamic country coming from the roots of Indo-Aryan Culture. Its music is influenced by Central Asia, Persian, Turkish and Arabic culture.

1500 BCE ago the Vedic Indic people migrated into the Indian subcontinent and self-designated themselves as the Aryan Civilization.  One of their sources of music is the Vedas where some hymns/mantra’s are found called “samhitas” and “srutis”

Also, Sufi music has been a part of Pakistan’s music history through the Islamic period when the religion came to their land. Sufi music is a devotional music inspired by the works of Sufi poets.

There is a wide range of folk songs for every occasion from birth to death including marriage, festivals, fairs and religious ceremonies.

Folk music is often perceived as the traditional music of Punjab and typically has communal authorship. This aspect of folk music has shifted with time but the older categories of folk begin with the dhadi genre, which does follow ideas of communal authorship. The folk dhadi genre emphasizes stories of heroism and love stories, as exemplified by the numerous ballads of the legendary romantic tales of Hir-Ranjha and Sahiba-Mirza. Folk music is also commonly used in various life-cycle events in the Punjab region.

Music of Pakistan