Fareed Haque of Garaj Mahal fame brings his band to Hangar 9

Guitarist and music instructor Fareed Haque of the popular group Garaj Mahal will bring his solo group, the Fareed Haque Group to Carbondale for a performance of unique jazz and classical guitar music.

The show, beginning at 10 p.m. Thursday at Hangar 9, is being orchestrated by a man whose accomplishments include appearing on Sunday Night with David Sanborn on NBC, a special for PBS and a stop on BET’s cable jazz channel. Because of his abilities as a musician, his talents have been called upon by such artists as Sting, Carl Denson, Medeski, Martin and Wood, Edgar Meyer and various other symphony orchestras throughout the United States and abroad.

Advertisement

According to his official bio, Haque’s influences stem from his Pakistani and Chilean heritage, as well as from extensive travels in Spain, France and Iran. In 1981, Haque received North Texas University’s Jazz Guitar Scholarship and spent a year studying with jazz guitarist Jack Peterson. Haque eventually transferred to Northwestern University where he finished his degree in classical guitar.

When not traveling with his group and not transcribing classic baroque and South American music, Haque is an assistant professor of jazz and classical guitar studies at Northern Illinois University. In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Haque stated that just because he also teaches, that doesn’t mean that he is done doing some learning of his own.

“I don’t even like students to call me ‘professor’,” Haque said. “Being called ‘all knowledgeable’ means I can’t learn anything else.”

In 2001, Haque co-founded Garaj Mahal, joined George Brooks’ group, Summit, and has released five recordings with his know-how at the helm:”Voices Rising” and “Manresa” on Sting’s Pangaea label, “Sacred Addiction,” “Opaque” and “Dj vu” on Bluenote Records. Recently, he released “Singh Song” on Haven Records.

For more information on Fareed Haque or any of his affiliated bands, go to www.fareed.com.