The Fanoos Ensemble bring the sounds of Afghanistan to Phoenix

Elham Fanoos developed a love for instruments growing up in Kabul. Decades later, he and his family are performing at the Musical Instrument Museum to invite Arizonans into the world of Afghanistan.

Elham Fanoos remembers growing up in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and hearing his father, Ahmad Fanoos, sing and play instruments. Thanks to his father’s appreciation for music, Fanoos developed a love for the craft during childhood.

At just 5 years old, Fanoos learned how to play the tabla, a paired drum set often used in Afghan music, and then eventually the piano, too, through YouTube tutorials at home. 

But between 1996 and 2001, music was banned by the Taliban, a militant Islamic group that took power in the country and claimed music “causes moral corruption.” That meant the family had to play in secret at home, often with their curtains drawn and the doors closed. Despite the risks, Fanoos’ love for music remained, and he continued to play and learn in secret.

“I could tell that they [his family] were trying to be very quiet,” Fanoos said. “I vividly remember they would control the volume and be very cautious of it, because you could essentially be killed if you play loud or make music publicly, or [if] someone were to find out.”

Despite the restrictions, he and his brother fell in love with music he said. Once the Taliban was no longer in power, he was able to improve his piano skills at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM), the only music school in the country.

In 2015, Fanoos came to the US to study piano performance at Hunter College in New York City, and he has been in the US ever since.

Bringing the band to the US

In 2021, the Taliban returned to power and, like most artists, dissidents, and scholars, Fanoos’ family knew it was no longer safe for them to stay in the country. Fanoos’ father, Ahmad, was a well-known performer and a former judge on an Afghan music series similar to American Idol, and they worried he could be targeted by the new and extreme government.  

Fanoos’ younger brother, Mehran, also left after being awarded a scholarship to study violin at Indiana University.

Once the trio reunited in the US in 2022, they decided that after years of admiring music and playing in secret, they would start their own band, the Fanoos Ensemble, to engage in their craft and offer Americans a peek into the world of Afghanistan. Due to the bans, the family had never before played together publicly, and were thrilled at the chance to finally do so on American soil. They performed a program called Heart of Afghanistan in 2022, and have since performed in dozens of states across the country.

On March 4, the group will perform its first album, “Echoes of Afghanistan,” along with Afghan folk songs, traditional ghazals based on the poetry of 13th-century Persian poet Rumi, and music from one of Afghanistan’s most famous singers, Ahmad Zahir, at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix at 7 p.m.

Elham Fanoos will play the piano, Mehran Fanoos will play the violin, Ahmad Fanoos will be the lead singer, and Sohail Karimi, a longtime friend, will play the tabla.

Afghanistan is too often misunderstood, with most of the focus placed on its fractured political dynamic, Fanoos said. He hopes his band can change that perception by showing Americans a different side of Afghanistan through its unique music, talent, and culture.

“We want to really present Afghanistan and show a positive face about the country. All everyone sees in the news is, unfortunately, negative, pessimistic,” Fanoos said. “That’s something that we really want to change and put some light on its cultural heritage.”

Fanoos hopes that concertgoers will leave the venue with a new and expanded understanding of his country, and understand the unique power of music to keep cultures alive. 

“Music is really a universal language, and music is something that actually keeps [us] connected with our roots.”

Arizonans can join him to immerse themselves in the music of Afghanistan at the Musical Instrument Museum. Tickets can be bought here.