Career
Aziz Mian was one of the more traditional Pakistani Qawwals. His voice was raspy and powerful. Aziz Mian was the only prominent qawwal to write his own lyrics (though, like others, he also performed songs written by other poets).
His break-out performance was in 1966, when he performed before the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. He won first prize and a gold medal from the Shah of Iran. In the early days of his career, he was nicknamed Fauji Qawwal (Urdu: فوجی قوال) (meaning "Military Qawwal") because most of his early stage-performances were in military barracks for army personnel. He was known for a "more recitative, more dramatic diction" and inclined toward qawwali's religious rather than entertainment qualities, though he also enjoyed success in more romantic qawwals.
For his service in philosophy and music, the Government of Pakistan awarded him the Pride of Performance medal in 1989.
He was fond of discussing religious and Sufi paradoxes in his qawwalis. He directly addressed Allah and complained about the misery of man (the greatest creation of the Almighty). In addition to his own poetry, Aziz Mian performed poetry by Allama Iqbal, and a number of contemporary Urdu poets, including Sadiq and Qateel Shifai.
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