Riffat Sultana

Riffat Sultana is the first woman from her family’s musical lineage to publicly perform in the west She is the daughter of Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, who was universally recognized and acclaimed as the finest Pakistani Classical singer of his time. Riffat’s family represents a 500-year lineage of musicians hailing from the Sham Chaurasi Gharana (school of music). The Ali Khan family are direct descendents of two famed court musicians, Suraj (of the Sun) Khan and Chand (of the Moon) Khan, who performed Morning and Evening Ragas respectively for the artistically devoted Mughal Emperor Akbar the Great.Riffat learned the nuances of her family’s musical tradition from her father and her brothers, all acclaimed singers in their own right. Her family background as well the countless other musical influences she absorbed growing up in Lahore, Pakistan have shaped Riffat into a unique artist worthy of distinction in the world music genre Riffat currently performs in a wide variety of musical configurations including her world-trance band SHABAZ.Riffat’s vocals have been recorded for numerous labels including Ark 21/Universal, Triloka/Mercury, Hearts of Space, City of Tribes, and XDot25. Riffat also recently wrote, recorded and collaborated with renowned DJ/producer Cheb I Sabbah on a new track entitled “Qalanderi”for his latest album Devotion set to release in January 29th, 2008 on Six Degrees RecordsRiffat frequently performs with her group, “Riffat Sultana and Party”, accompanied by Shiraz Ali Khan on 12 string guitar Salar Nader on tabla's, and Manose Newa on Bansuri flutes. Shiraz, Riffat’s husband, is a student of the Ustad Salamat Ali Khan family, and has recorded and produced multiple albums with them. Salar is a disciple of Ustad Zakir Hussein. The group performs a wide variety of traditional and modern material thrilling audiences of all types.Riffats new album Sufi Folk and Love Songs is available at CD Baby