Rizwan–ul–Haq is a Pakistani

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

music composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, and

backing vocalist A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

, earning fame as lead guitarist for the acclaimed band,

Vital Signs Vital signs (also known as vitals) are a group of the four to six most crucial medical signs that indicate the status of the body's vital (life-sustaining) functions. These measurements are taken to help assess the general physical health of a ...

Early life and education

Rizwan–ul–Haq grew up in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

and later

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, and achieved his early education from

Convent of Jesus and Mary, Karachi The Convent of Jesus and Mary, Karachi is a private Catholic primary schools for boys and girls and a secondary school for girls only, located in Karachi, Pakistan. Founded in 1952, the school is owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi. ...

and higher education from St. Mary’s Academy, Rawalpindi. Before embarking on his career in music, he did his BSC degree in business management from

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the an ...

, England. He cites

Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

and

Nazia and Zoheb Nazia and Zoheb () were a Pakistani pop duo from Karachi, Sindh formed in 1980. The group consisted of two siblings, Nazia Hassan and Zohaib Hassan, Zoheb Hassan (collectively known as ''Hassans'' or ''The Hassans'' or ''Hazan''), who were a s ...

as his major influences during the youth.

Vital Signs Vital signs (also known as vitals) are a group of the four to six most crucial medical signs that indicate the status of the body's vital (life-sustaining) functions. These measurements are taken to help assess the general physical health of a ...

After the departure of

Salman Ahmad Salman Ahmad ( ur, , born 12 December 1963) is a Pakistani born-American musician, rock guitarist, physician, activist, occasional actor and professor at the City University of New York. He earned nationwide popularity in 1998 for his uni ...

Rohail Hyatt Rohail Hyatt (Urdu: روحیل حیات) is a Pakistani record producer, Synthesizer, keyboardist, and Music composer, composer. As record producer, Hyatt is largely credited with pioneering Pakistani pop rock music by incorporating western Ro ...

's childhood friend Rizwan–ul–Haq was asked to join the band as lead guitarist. Back in 1991, Rizwan had just returned from the UK. Eagerly looking for a job, he ran into Rohail Hyatt – the founding member and producer of Pakistan’s biggest pop band,

. Rizwan left

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...

for

to join the band and the Signs began work on their third album in Rohail Hyatt's studios, Pyramid Studios, in 1993. The third album ''

Aitebar ''Aitebar'' was the third album of the Pakistani band Vital Signs. Track listing All music arranged, composed and produced by Vital Signs. All songs written by Shoaib Mansoor. Personnel All information is taken from the CD. ;Vital Signs ...

'', which soon outsold its predecessor, ''Vital Signs 2'', was an ultimate success. The Signs then started their nationwide tour and collaborated with

Shoaib Mansoor Shoaib Mansoor (Full name, Shoaib Mansoor), ( ur, ; born 4 February 1951 Karachi) is a Pakistani television and film director, writer, producer, lyricist and musician of Muhajir origin. Active in the television industry since 1980, he first f ...

who directed "''Guitar '93'', a compilation of videos of Vital Signs' biggest hits thus far. It shot across the four provinces and was financed by Pepsi Pakistan Inc. Made for PTV, ''Guitar '93'' was an entertaining document of the band's progress as one of the best pop/rock acts in Pakistan. With the release of ''Guitar'93'', it was Rizwan who gained a lot of publicity and notability, and Signs also played their highest number of concerts in 1993. The biggest took place at the KMC Stadium in Karachi, a mega-concert headlined by the Signs and also consisting of performances from

The Milestones The Milestones () were a Pakistani pop rock band that formed in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, in 1990. The group was formed by lead guitarist, Ziyyad Gulzar and bassist, Ali Tim, who were soon joined by female lead vocalist, Candy Pereira. The Mi ...

Awaz Awaz ( ur, آواز ) was a Pakistani pop band that formed in Islamabad in 1992. The group was formed by Haroon Rashid, lead vocalist, who was soon joined by keyboardist Faakhir Mehmood and lead guitarist Asad Ahmed. Awaz were one of the pio ...

and the newly formed rock band, ''Arsh''. Former member

was present in the audience. It was after this concert Rohail first started to show signs of agitation regarding his growing dissatisfaction with Rizwan–ul–Haq's playing and his expenses. The success of ''Aetibar'' and ''Guitar'93'' marked a great opportunity for Signs. The Signs marked its very first international tour to US in 1993, becoming the first Pakistan musical act to do so. In 1994, the band did not extend the contract for its guitarist, Rizwan–ul–Haq, despite his urgings. Rizwan was relieved and, according to Rohail Hyatt, "shown the door" after which Hyatt chose technical guitar whiz

Aamir Zaki Aamir Zaki (April 8, 1968 – June 2, 2017) was a Saudi born Pakistani guitarist-songwriter and composer. Zaki is considered by many as one of the most influential guitarists in Pakistan's history. He is considered to be among the pioneers of Roc ...

to become the band's new lead guitarist. When asked about his journey in Vital Signs, Rizwan–ul–Haq said: ''“I have beautiful memories of my time with the Signs. In fact, I met the love of my life, my wife for the past 27 years, while on a tour with the Signs.”'' Though the band's demise was never officially announced, by 1998 when the Signs were offered a deal by Pepsi Pakistan Inc. for another album, Rohail declined, signaling the end of Vital Signs.

1995–present: ''Teri Gali'' and Gemini Studios

After recording the last album for

in 1995, Rizwan–ul–Haq left the band and briefly worked as a music composer and recording producer for the PTV. He soon went solo after the departure from

and his solo debut single, ''Teri Gali'', became a hit on

MTV India MTV India is an Indian pay television channel specialising in music, reality and youth culture programming. It was launched in 1996 as the Indian version of MTV and is owned by Viacom 18, a joint venture operation between MTV International owne ...

. Following few moderately received covers, he went on to make tunes for television commercials and sound tracks for the movies. He also found passion in collecting music memorabilias and guitars — a total of 30 vintage

Gibson Les Paul The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typi ...

s. In an interview with Alyan Khan, he said:

References

{{authority control Living people Pakistani rock guitarists Pakistani pianists Coke Studio (Pakistani TV program) Musicians from Karachi Pakistani record producers University of Peshawar alumni Male pianists 21st-century pianists 21st-century Pakistani male singers 21st-century Pakistani singers 1965 births