вЂњThere are six of us in this group and we have various programs at weddings - including recitations from the Holy Koran.вЂќ вЂњIt has been a month since the establishment of the Islamic Peace Group,вЂќ Farahmand says. One such group, called the Islamic Peace Group, was founded in Herat by Rahim Farahmand. These recently founded Taliban-approved groups are flourishing by performing recitations from the Koran at weddings along with speeches and theater performances that praise the Taliban. вЂњIn Kandahar, music was banned and the Afghan media stopped broadcasting music that feeds the human soul,' Tashe laments.Д«efore Taliban fighters stormed into Herat in early August, about 50 musical ensembles regularly performed at weddings and private concerts in the western Afghan city.ДЄn official at HeratвЂ™s wedding hall, speaking on condition of anonymity, told RFE/RL those groups disappeared after Taliban cultural authorities warned that musical instruments should not be played at weddings.Дespite such bans, some Afghan musicians continue to work by performing a Taliban-approved form of вЂњmusic-less song.вЂќ вЂњThe elimination of music in Afghanistan is the elimination of a large part of AfghanistanвЂ™s cultural community,вЂќ says Javed Tashe, an Afghan musician who is among those that have fled Taliban rule. Taliban Warns West Of Fresh Wave Of Refugees If Afghan Sanctions Not Relaxed Those traditions are a blend of traditional Afghan folk melodies and the poetry of the former Afghan royal courts that merged with classical music structures from northern India. Nevertheless, a revival of the art form blossomed as Afghan musicians breathed life back into their heritage after decades of war and repression. Still, attempts to revive Afghan music were criticized by conservative Islamic clerics - particularly, programs like a United Nations-funded school for female musicians at the Nagashand Fine Arts Gallery in the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif.ДЄfghan musicians, both men and women, also found themselves being targeted by militant attacks. Some literally buried their precious instruments underground.ДЄs Afghan Media Struggles Under Taliban, Jobless Journalists Grow DesperateДЄfghanistanвЂ™s classical music traditions survived through musicians who had fled to Pakistan or Iran where they could practice freely and pass their knowledge on to the next generation.ДЄfter 2001, when the previous Taliban regime was toppled by the U.S.-led invasion, Afghan refugees who returned to their homeland brought these musical traditions back with them. Most musicians who remained in Afghanistan at that time either played secretly in their homes or hid their instruments. The Taliban regime that ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 had also banned music under its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Singing is not allowed in ShariвЂ™a,вЂќ Siddiqullah claims. вЂњMusic has not been allowed anywhere in Bamiyan. вЂњWe instruct the artists according to the principles of ShariвЂ™a and the Islamic Emirate,вЂќ Siddiqullah recently told RFE/RLвЂ™s Radio Azadi. Siddiqullah, the Taliban-installed police chief in Bamiyan, justifies the bans and the destruction of instruments by arguing that nobody is allowed to play music. Meanwhile, local Taliban authorities in Afghanistan continue to issue decrees outlawing music in the capital, Kabul, and in major cities like Kandahar, Herat, and Mazar-e Sharif. They are now living in limbo among about 11,000 Afghan refugees who have recently arrived in neighboring Pakistan. That has led hundreds of musicians to flee the country in fear of their lives.Д«efore the TalibanвЂ™s return to power, Gholami had been part of a thriving movement that brought traditional Afghan music to the people of the country.ДЇor the previous two decades, it had been common to see groups of men in the streets performing AfghanistanвЂ™s traditional national dance, the Atan-e Milli, to the accompaniment of drums and reed flutes. In line with that view, the Taliban has beaten musicians in some areas, burned instruments, and banned music. The Taliban has tried to project a more moderate image to convince Afghans and the international community that it has changed since the 1990s.Д«ut its position on music has been inconsistent and no clear order has yet been issued beyond a public statement from Taliban spokesman like Zabihullah Mujahid, who has called music 'un-Islamic.' The Taliban, which banned music during its repressive rule from 1996 to 2001, swept back into power in August. вЂњI came back here because of the Taliban,вЂќ Gholami says. Afghan Musicians Fear Being Silenced By The TalibanДЄfter the Taliban seized control of BamiyanвЂ™s provincial capital on August 15, Gholami moved back to his village in the Yakhulang district where he has been scraping out a meager existence as a farm worker.

Indian musical instrument