{"id":121434,"date":"2026-02-04T12:16:34","date_gmt":"2026-02-04T17:16:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=121434"},"modified":"2026-02-04T13:00:02","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T18:00:02","slug":"interview-sufi-symphonic-traditions-meet-composer-rushil-ranjan-talks-orchestral-qawwali-project","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2026\/02\/04\/interview-sufi-symphonic-traditions-meet-composer-rushil-ranjan-talks-orchestral-qawwali-project\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Sufi &amp; Symphonic Traditions Meet: Composer Rushil Ranjan Talks About The Orchestral Qawwali Project"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_121436\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-121436\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-121436\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-02-04T121442.865.jpg\" alt=\"Composer\/musician Rushil Ranjan &amp; Indian classical singer Abi Sampa (Photo courtesy of the artists)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-02-04T121442.865.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-02-04T121442.865-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-02-04T121442.865-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-2026-02-04T121442.865-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-121436\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Composer\/musician Rushil Ranjan &amp; Indian classical singer Abi Sampa (Photo courtesy of the artists)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Orchestral Qawwali Project, a unique concert experience that blends Sufi poetry, Indian classical dance, and orchestral sound, comes to Toronto for the first time on <strong>February 13, 2026<\/strong>. The performance features singer <strong>Abi Sampa<\/strong>, and composer\/musician <strong>Rushil Ranjan<\/strong>, who created the work.<\/p>\n<p>The traditional purpose of qawwali is to lead its listeners into a kind of spiritual rapture. This conversation between the Sufi devotional tradition and Western symphonic form reaches out to South Asian and Urdu-speaking diasporas, along with music lovers of all backgrounds.<\/p>\n<p>LV spoke to composer <strong>Rushil Ranjan<\/strong> about the Project.<\/p>\n<p>Orchestral Qawwali: Rushil Ranjan &amp; Abi Sampa with the The Scottish Chamber Orchestra, recorded live at Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow on October 14, 2022:<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ZndJNdJ1WDY?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h2>Composer Rushil Ranjan: The Interview<\/h2>\n<p>London-based composer, arranger, and producer Rushil Ranjan\u2019s work creates bridges between classical artworks from around the globe. He\u2019s written music for a variety of media and formats, including concert, dance productions, and TV and film projects.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn&#8217;t have a classical education in either Indian or Western music,\u201d Ranjan begins.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s a pretty remarkable journey for someone who is now Associate Artist at the Royal Albert Hall, Collaborative Artist of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and Artistic Partner at Manchester Camerata. His career in orchestral music actually began in 2020 with the Orchestral Qawwali Project, which he created with fellow Associate Artist Abi Sampa, his partner.<\/p>\n<p>But, his first exposure to Sufi music dates back farther, to about 2015.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was immediately drawn to it,\u201d he says. He met classical Indian singer <strong>Abi Sampa<\/strong> around the same time, and eventually the two put together a recording project. \u201cI was tasked with basically producing the record.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He recalls that one of the first ideas that came to mind was using string players. He recruited a cellist, who played along with Sampa\u2019s vocals. Ranjan created a multi-track piece with it that was an immediate hit.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt kind of went viral online,\u201d he says. The single, an arrangement of the ancient Sufi poem \u201cMan Kunto Maula\u201d, was used by Coca Cola and other companies for advertising, furthering its reach.<\/p>\n<p>The next big break came just after the COVID lockdowns lifted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe got a call from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra,\u201d he says. \u201cIt was a dream to be asked.\u201d The music was performed live in concert to widespread acclaim. \u201cThe benefit was that we were part of a double bill with with Anoushka Shankar.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rushil was working on the music via computer at the time, downloading patches for every single line in the orchestra, and using midi to write out the score. He then worked with a copyist to transfer it to Sibelius, a notation program that put it into the parts the musicians could read.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt kind of worked incrementally from that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>When he was contacted to work with Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman to perform with his Firdaus Orchestra in Dubai a short time later, it sparked a road to educating himself on the art of symphonic arrangements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI went through this incredibly painful but rewarding process,\u201d he says. \u201cI think the fact that I had no idea what the ecosystem was, and how it worked, that it gave me a silly sense of confidence,\u201d he laughs.<\/p>\n<p>Next came a commission from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and he first began to think about fully composing for orchestra rather than creating arrangements based on what he\u2019d written via midi. He\u2019d already written music for choirs, so it seemed the next logical step.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI unwittingly found where I wanted to be,\u201d he says. \u201cIt&#8217;s an endless journey.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As he points out, when you\u2019re writing for film and TV previously (and many of those productions won BAFTA awards), it\u2019s music that\u2019s not necessarily designed for live performance. You can write for any kind of instrumentation or ensemble.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a difference,\u201d he notes. With a live orchestra, you have to work with the musicians and materials on hand. \u201cThere&#8217;s no studio automation that&#8217;s going to save you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>These days, he\u2019s using score pads to compose. That doesn\u2019t mean he\u2019s abandoned technology, however. \u201cThe wonderful thing about technology is that you can mock things up and get an idea of how it sounds,\u201d he points out.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s hooked, however, on working with a live orchestra.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything that we do, whatever we put in, no matter how it damages our budgets on stage, we love having real musicians doing it on stage,\u201d he says. That goes for recorded music as well. \u201cIt&#8217;s very rare for us to leave midi in a final piece.\u201d He mentions \u201cthe privilege of being able to create for real musicians to be able to interpret.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt takes on entirely different dimensions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tu Hi Tu (Live in Birmingham) with Rushil Ranjan, Abi Sampa, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra &amp; Ben Palmer, Jan 17, 2025:<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8xBdY5yYY6c?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>On Sufi Music<\/h3>\n<p>What makes Sufi music unique?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt originated in the 13th century in Mogol India,\u201d he explains. When the Persian Empire arrived in India, they brought their own traditions. The music came to incorporate chanting, and the concept of using music to access divinity. Other elements imported from Persian include phrases that are repeated with clapping.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn music, it&#8217;s very plural,\u201d he notes. The lyrics are used by some to pray in temples, by others in mosques. \u201cWe are all trying to access the same thing,\u201d Ranjan says. \u201cIt&#8217;s quite direct and quite potent. It was designed to be very accessible, to bring as many people into that fold as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Indian classical music, with all its inherent complexity, wasn\u2019t part of the mix at first.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cInterestingly, if you look at the origins of both Indian and Sufi music, and Western classical music, they all have religious origins,\u201d Rushil points out. \u201cYou can still feel that divinity at times when you listen to certain pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That shared origin impulse and purpose is part of what makes sense when it comes to blending the orchestral and Sufi musical traditions together. \u201cThat\u2019s why they sit together so well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sufi music, as he notes, has already been paired with a number of other genres, including dance and trance music. Those genres also have some shared commonalities, including the rhythmic elements of dance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe whirling dervishes, in particular in Turkish forms of Sufi music, have always been used to illustrate the trance-like nature of the music.\u201d In Sufi music, it\u2019s about getting lost in a kind of spiritual ecstasy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you listen to a qawwali,\u201d he says, \u201cit&#8217;s three or four phrases.\u201d The lyrics repeat those phrases. \u201cThe Sufi dances do the same thing but with movement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Qawwali Project adds elements of classical Indian tradition back into the fold when it comes to movement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt makes it slightly more interesting to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6xFi19SMDcg?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>The Orchestral Qawwali Project in Toronto<\/h3>\n<p>For the Toronto performance, they\u2019ll be working with local dancers on stage. The majority of the musicians on stage, and the choir, will also be Toronto artists. There\u2019s a total of 69 artists of various kinds on stage for the performance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe vast majority of performers on stage are Canadian.\u201d Naturally, the logistics of bringing such a large ensemble from the UK are prohibitive, but there are other advantages to using local musicians for each concert on tour. \u201cIt&#8217;s still much more wonderful to do it this way, because every orchestra has a different tonality,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s the first time I&#8217;ll be playing in Canada,\u201d he adds, remarking that he\u2019s excited to hear what it will sound like with local artist. \u201cIt just brings different flavour to the music. It&#8217;s exciting for us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He points out that the Meridian Hall is a relatively large venue, something that hasn\u2019t always been the case for previous performances. \u201cWe&#8217;re an independent act,\u201d he notes. He\u2019s grateful for the response from Toronto music lovers so far.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere&#8217;s been such a wonderful response to this.\u201d<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Find tickets and event details [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/tolive.com\/Event-Details-Page\/reference\/Qawwali-2026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Are you looking to promote an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/advertising\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0e101a\"><u>event<\/u><\/span><\/a>? Have a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/masthead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>news tip<\/u><\/a>? 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