The Art of the Drum

CASA DE LA TROVA, STG DE CUBA

2008-10-08T14:53:00.006Z

Walk down almost any street in Santiago de Cuba on any summer day, and you will encounter live music in some fashion. Whether it be a solo trumpeter performing in front of a park bench, or a full son cubano ensemble blaring out of a “casa de música,” in the summer months, Santiago D.C. is just teeming with live music. For clarity: “son,” like mambo, rumba or salsa, is a subgenre of Cuban music. Son, however, originates in the Oriente, and thus is most popular in the Santiago D.C.

Throughout Santiago D.C., there is a mixture of famous, marquee music halls, and smaller, lesser-known venues. Located in central Santiago, just a block from Parque Céspedes, Casa de la Trova (House of the Ballad), is one of the more popular music halls.

One evening, I ventured to Casa de la Trova, with a French friend and a Cuban friend. The band was enjoyable; however, as the Festival del Caribe had ended the night before, there was not much of a turn out, in terms of the crowd. That said, as a drummer, listening to Cuban rhythms is always an entertaining activity.

Below are some assorted pictures from Santiago D.C. My personal favorite is the graffiti “Soy un tambor” (“I am a drum”) that I saw in a park near La Gran Piedra (The Big Rock), a popular attraction on the outskirts of the city. More to come…

FOOTAGE FROM THE FESTIVAL DEL CARIBE

2008-10-08T14:50:00.002Z

Below are a collection of videos from the 2008 Festival del Caribe in Santiago de Cuba. Please see the previous post to read more about festival. The final three videos are from the Burning of the Devil ceremony, which marked the culmination of the Festival del Caribe. Enjoy!

FESTIVAL DEL CARIBE / FIESTA DEL FUEGO

2008-10-02T00:04:00.019Z

After spending several weeks in Havana, I departed on a fourteen-hour bus ride to Santiago de Cuba, in the Orient. Santiago de Cuba, Cuba’s second-largest city, holds a special place in Cuban history, as it was the city where Fidel Castro proclaimed victory of the Revolution in 1959.

Santiago de Cuba has a very laid-back, relaxed feel to it: there is a notable absence of the daily hustle found in Havana. Aesthetically, Santiago almost looks as if it were a Cuban (mini) version of San Francisco: the city is set on a hill that overlooks a bay. The endless rows of pastel colored houses and overhanging telephone lines also radiate a “San Fran” feel.

Every mid-July since 1980, the city hosts la Festival del Caribe, the Festival of the Caribbean – it is also known as the Fiesta de Fuego, the Fire Festival. The festival showcases the music, dance, and other various cultural intricacies of each of the countries in the Caribbean. For one week, Santiago de Cuba is overflowing with people from all of the Caribbean: it is a wonderful means to bridge cultural gaps among the people from different Caribbean countries. Each year, the festival is “dedicated” to one country, and this year, Mexico was country of honor.

The week-long celebration includes countless activities, but the final day of the festival, which features an elaborate parade, is the true highlight of the week. Each country participates in the parade; showing off the country’s respective music and dance. Because Cuba is the host country, throughout the procession, there are representatives from all of the provinces of Cuba – compared to the singular group from every other country.

The procession commences in the late afternoon and stretches until just after sunset. The heart of the festival is located in the plaza in front of Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Asunción.

Most certainly, the music during the procession is outstanding: it is such a neat juxtaposition to hear all of the respective rhythms from each of the Caribbean countries. While each performance has a strong emphasis on dance (and the extravagant costumes that go with it!), the music truly is the focal point of the parade. As true with all parades, drums and percussion are the cornerstone of the musical ensemble.

While I will readily admit that the majority of the rhythms of Caribbean music do not greatly differ country to country, there are many notable differences in style and form among each country’s respective music. It is impossible to pinpoint my favorite performance, although I thoroughly enjoyed the cavalcades of Brazil, Trinidad & Tobago, and the Dominican Republic. The procession of Trinidad & Tobago was especially memorable, as there was a large truck with a full-kit drummer and steel drummer playing on the back.

On that note, I’m sure I will never forget the fire-breathing roller-skaters, or the cross-dressing drummers that played tin cans and boxes. (Words cannot describe; see pictures below…)

As the sun began to set, the streets became more packed and packed: it felt as if the entire city was partaking in the festivities. After the parade-portion of the festival ended, the festivities culminated with the Quemando del Diablo, the Burning of the Devil.

The march from the town hall in the center of the city to the effigy, located near one of the ports about a mile away, was epic, to say the least. Just before 9pm, a twenty-foot, wooden effigy of Lucifer was set ablaze. Drumming, singing, and dancing around the burning flames continued well into the night.

Below are just a handful of pictures from the Festival del Caribe/Fiesta del Fuego. Videos will be posted shortly.

CALLEJÓN DE HAMEL

2008-09-30T20:22:00.001Z

Tucked away in Central Havana – not too far from the Malecon Boulevard –, Callejón de Hamel is one of the truly legendary music venues in Cuba. Unlike the Buena Vista Social Club, a members-only club, Callejón de Hamel (Hamel Alley) is open to the public, and in turn, stands out as of one of the staples of the Cuban music scene.

Founded in the early 1990s by Salvador Gonzales, a local artist, Callejón de Hamel aspires to promote the artistic abilities of the Afro-Cuban population.

The physical space itself is extraordinary: murals, sculptures and assorted artistic-creations are scattered throughout the alley. At times, the vividly bright colors are mesmerizing.

Although events are also hosted on Friday and Saturday, Sunday is the most bustling day at Callejón de Hamel. Every Sunday, different, local rumba artists perform free concerts for the public.

Rumba is one of the most distinct musical genres in Cuba: while it is difficult to define rumba, as it simply needs to heard to be understood, in essence, rumba is a heavily African-influenced Cuban music.

The offbeat rhythms of rumba (as in, rhythms that do not hold a steady two-four beat) make the music very unique, rhythmically. As a drummer, rumba is so engaging because the percussion section is not locked down to a steady beat. That is to say, the rhythm of rumba music is very “free” and “open” – in a sense, the rhythm of rumba has the same sort of mobility that a melody typically enjoys.

The performance I attended was very enjoyable; although, truth be told, it was not the best rumba performance I saw in Cuba. Surely, Callejón de Hamel is an “authentic” Cuban experience; nevertheless, as it is listed on Lonely Planet’s “Must See In Havana” list, the place is, not surprisingly, swamped with tourists.

This over-exploitation explains why the “premier” rumba players no longer perform at Callejón de Hamel. That said, the space is stunningly beautiful, the music is enjoyable, and I have never been to anywhere quite like Callejón de Hamel. I wholeheartedly recommend a visit to the place.

By showcasing the most talented Afro-Cuban artists and musicians, Callejón de Hamel promotes the development and growth of the creative arts in Cuba society. Despite its recent “guidebook celebrity status,” Callejón de Hamel is an integral part of the Afro-Cuban community and well-worth a visit!

CORDOVA THE CRAFTSMAN

2008-09-15T21:35:00.015Z

One muggy afternoon, I found myself on Calle Obispo, a rather busy street in Central Havana. As I was walking leisurely, ice-cream cone in hand, I stumbled upon a music shop, Longina Música, that sold both records and instruments.

As I entered the store, I immediately saw a series of ornately crafted drums. These drums could easily be mistaken for sculptures: one drum depicted a little man whose head was the top of the drum, another drum was of a screaming face, and another had complex lattice of woodwork around the body of the drum. It is too difficult to describe phenomenal details of these drums; I would recommend scrolling down to the bottom of this entry to see the photographs.

The master behind these ingenious creations is Eduardo Cordova Reyes, a native of Havana. From an early age, Mr. Cordova studied music, most specifically drums and percussion. At some point in his late teens, he became interested in wood crafting; and eventually, he fused his two passions, and began crafting drums and percussion instruments.

Most interestingly, Mr. Cordova uses his dreams as inspirations for the visual blueprints of his instruments. Through an academic lens, this concept is pretty fascinating to think about; nonetheless, after viewing some of Mr. Cordova’s drums, it all makes perfect sense. His most famous drum is entitled, “El Tambor de las Siete Bocas” (“The Drum With Seven Mouths”) – not the most creative of titles, but the fact that his drums even have names underscores the notion that his drums actually are more artistic than practical. As the name indicates, the drum has seven different faces; and actually, there are seven different (drum) heads on the instrument, so the player can play on any of the seven heads.

Over the course of this past year, I have encountered some amazing drums; and with that in mind, I can firmly assert that Mr. Cordova’s creations have the most intricate craftsmanship I have seen. The drums are more akin to artistic sculptures than musical instruments: he truly has crafted some very special instruments. According to the music shop owner, Mr. Cordova has won several international awards for his craftsmanship.

Much to my dismay, Mr. Cordova was out of town – at a workshop in Italy. I was able to chat with the music shop owners about Mr. Cordova's work, so I was able to learn a bunch about him. A couple years back, a Cuban magazine called Tropicana Internacional, published a pretty extensive interview with him; and somewhat ironically, the article was entitled, “Cordova: el arte del tambor” (or, in English, “Cordoba: The Art of the Drum”).

If you would like to learn more about Mr. Cordova’s drums, definitely check out his MySpace account, http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=102788605, or you can read this article about his life, http://www.archivocubano.org/ravelo.html. Just a heads up, the latter is only in Spanish…

Sadly, I was unable to purchase a drum, as I was weary of bringing back anything from Cuba to the States. That said, I was blown away by what I saw, and those memories are enough for me…

Longina Música is located on Calle Obispo No. 360, between Calle Habana and Calle Compostela.

¡CUBA, SÍ!

2008-09-09T20:29:00.005Z

After my brief stay in London, I flew to Havana, Cuba, for the final leg of my Bristol Fellowship. On the plane ride back to my usual hemisphere, it was hard to believe that my year of research was almost complete.

Like my transition from Japan to India, at first, I had a bit of difficulty adjusting to life in Cuba. Simply put, I had had such a positive experience in Morocco – both in terms of my research and my social life – that I actually did not want to leave Morocco at all! Either way, after a restless flight, I found myself in downtown Havana.

Truth be told, I am not in love with Havana. While the city is aesthetically pleasing, there is so much hustle in Havana that it can be quiet a hassle to walk the streets alone. Needless to say, it is a fascinating city in itself; it truly is like stepping into a time capsule, as the majority of the cars are from before 1959 (not to mention most of the buildings look like they have not been restored for five or six decades).

Access to the internet in Cuba is limited, at best, making it impossible to update my website while I was in the country. Furthermore, as a citizen of the United States, my visit to Cuba was, technically, illegal; so I did not want to attract any unwanted attention.

Over the forthcoming days, I will post more on my musical experiences on the island. Without a doubt, I attended some incredible shows; I can boldly assert that Cuban rhythms are the most enjoyable in the world. Videos and (more) photographs to come…

RADIOHEAD IN LONDON

2008-09-03T19:57:00.005Z

Just hours after the post-party for L’Boulevard Festival ended, I flew from Casablanca to London – in a not-so-direct manner, as I had a layover in Rome. I spent three days in London, in order to gather the proper documentation to enter Cuba. (Actually, the gap between the flights turned out to be essential, as my bag was lost by the airline!)

Coincidentally, Radiohead, one of my all time favorite bands, was in town, playing two shows in Victoria Park; and naturally, I attended both concerts. I actually got a free ticket to the second show; perhaps I just have very good music-karma.

While these experiences had nothing to do with the fellowship per se, Radiohead’s drummer, Phil Selway, has always been at the forefront of pushing the creative envelope for drums and percussion. Phil is best known for his integration of acoustic and electronic drums. Furthermore, unlike many popular rock drums, Phil often employs odd time signatures to his beats.

Both shows were outstanding – I have no doubts that Radiohead are one of the best live bands out there, if not the best. The highlight of both shows came during “Bangers & Mash,” as Thom Yorke, the lead singer, played drums on an auxiliary kit and sang. Most definitely, the prospect of two drummers on one song makes me smile.

And, might I add, Thom has some serious chops! Enjoy the photographs.

L'BOULEVARD FESTIVAL: CASABLANCA

2008-08-19T00:29:00.008+01:00

Over the past few years, L’Boulevard Festival in Casablanca has emerged as one of the premier festivals to showcase popular Moroccan rock, reggae and hip hop acts. Like so many other festivals throughout Morocco, the festival was extremely well organized and the promoters demonstrated a profound level of professionalism.

The festival ran from Wednesday, June 18th through Sunday, the 22nd: I was only able to attend two nights, Thursday and Sunday, as I wanted to attend the Maroc Hit Parade in Rabat on the 21st. (This just goes to show how many festivals there are in Morocco; many festivals overlap one another).

On Thursday, I attended a performance by H-Kayne, probably the most popular hip-hop act in Morocco. It was definitely a fun show, although, as a drummer, I always am a little jaded while watching a concert that does not have a live drummer. As they say, “Drum machines don’t have souls.”

Sunday was the biggest day of the festival, anyway, with performances by Darga, Barry, Band of Gnawa, and of course, Hoba Hoba Spirit. The whole afternoon and evening was a blast. Hoba’s performance was incredible: it was the hometown show for the band, so there was an even higher level of energy than normal. Because I was leaving Morocco the next morning, it also was the last Hoba Hoba Spirit concert I attended, making it a very special experience for me.

Throughout the course of this year, I have been exposed to many new wonderful musicians. Without a doubt, I have seen more talent in Morocco than any of the other countries I have conducted the research in.

When friends ask me, “What is Moroccan music like?” I cannot help but roll my eyes. Moroccan music is absurdly diverse: because North Africa is teeming with so many different cultural influences, the music of Morocco cannot be easily categorized. But, to answer that nagging question, Moroccan music can sound like traditional Arabian music or classical Berber music or classical Andalusian (Spanish) music or typical French music or tribal West African music…or, it can sound like a hybrid of all, or some, of those influences!

Because contemporary artists have such a deep musical pool to draw from, bands like Hoba Hoba Spirit and Darga emerge with a very unique, but very grounded, sound. I think it is so neat how modern bands employ traditional elements.

To think of the evolution of Moroccan music, it is so incredible to remember that a genre of music, like gnaoua, originated as the music of West African slaves brought to Morocco. The rhythms of gnaoua can be heard in the music of Hoba Hoba Spirit. These same rhythms even constitute the backbone of blues music. Very, very cool, indeed…

In terms of my personal experience in Morocco, I have only the fondest memories of country. I would highly recommend anyone and everyone to travel to Morocco; it is one of the most fascinating, and beautiful, corners of the world. If you are a music aficionado, definitely visit Morocco anytime from the middle of May to early July, as there are a plethora of festivals. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the “music season” in Morocco is that almost all of the performances are free: it is so commendable that the King and other private institutions have financed so many great festivals.

Lastly, I must say a big, BIG thank you to Amine Chabi and Adil Hanine for all their help. I could write a list of a hundred names of individuals that assisted me throughout my field research, a testament to the tremendous level of hospitality throughout the country…

Apologies for the delays on the website; more to come on my adventures in Cuba. Stay tuned…

MAROC HIT PARADE: RABAT

2008-08-11T18:18:00.006+01:00

On Saturday, June 21st, I attended the inaugural year of the Maroc Hit Parade Festival, which is sponsored by Hit Radio, in Rabat. Top to bottom, it was the best one-day lineup of any festival I saw in Morocco; some of the artists included H-Kayne, Fnaire, Darga, Bigg, Casa Crew, and Hoba Hoba Spirit

There was a somber atmosphere because a week earlier, the DJ of the hip hop act Fnaire, Hicham Belqas, died in a car accident in Fes. I actually went to Fnaire’s performance in Fes the night before Hicham died. At one point during the festival, all of the artists gathered on a stage for a moment of silence in remembrance of Hicham.

Hoba Hoba Spirit headlined the festival; because there were so many other acts, Hoba didn’t finish their set until almost two in the morning. Of course, Hoba played a great show; but the highlight of the evening was the performance by Darga, another rock-reggae-gnaoua fusion band from Casablanca. Amine Belghiti, the lead singer of Darga, actually performed a couple of songs with Hoba. A very cool collaboration indeed…

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC: IN CONCLUSION

2008-08-11T17:26:00.003+01:00

Truth be told, I had rather mixed feelings about the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music: on one hand, it is a fantastic gathering of musicians, but on the other, it is a blatant exploitation of religious music. While the festival has a strong emphasis on multiculturalism, which is a positive aspect, there is a rampant sense of materialism at the festival – a prospect that should be contradictory to “sacred” music.

Indeed, a lingering question remains, as to whether “spirituality” in music can exist when there is corporate sponsorship. How can it truly be spiritual if a profit is made? Spirituality music is supposed to be free of material chains; the music of the Divine should be accessible to all. Furthermore, music is an expression of the self; so in a sense, almost all music can be labeled as “spiritual,” as, existentially speaking, the self is a reflection of the Self.

Yet, this is all a matter of perspective; some people do not find anything negative about the festival’s approach to “spiritual,” or “sacred,” music. At one show, I met a young banker named Khalid Ben Hadine, who is from Fes. Khalid had very positive things to say about idea of the festival: “Spiritual music is more important [than contemporary music]…it helps you to be comfortable with yourself.” Khalid asserted that with, “rock and hip hop, we lose spirituality. They are too commercial.” He lamented that the youth of Morocco just “want the clothes” that the artists wear. According to Khalid, “modernization” has caused this desire for the material world. Nevertheless, with the music at the Fes Festival, the people are able to learn about “the history of my country.” The festival creates a, “good chance [opportunity] to meet old cultures” from around the world Khalid was adamant when he stated, “We need it [sacred music]. Radio is just pop, house, rap; it is so rare to find spiritual music on the radio.”

In sum, the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music is extremely well-organized festival; yet, unfortunately, due to the high cost of the tickets, it remains inaccessible to the bulk of the Moroccan population.

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC: HOBA HOBA SPIRIT, SUNDAY

2008-08-09T22:39:00.000+01:00

From Hoba Hoba Spirit's second show at the Fes Festival...

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC: HOBA HOBA SPIRIT (SATURDAY)

2008-08-09T20:21:00.001+01:00

The Fes Festival of Sacred Music is not exclusive to “sacred” music: several venues, chiefly Ait Skato and Bab Boujloud, feature contemporary musicians. While I support the idea that the Fes Festival has both traditional and contemporary music, I firmly believe the organizers need to try to bridge a gap between these two genres. That is to say, there is no effort to recognize the “spiritual” aspect of contemporary music. Indeed, it is disappointing that the event organizers place so much emphasis on the “sacredness” of traditional music yet fail to distinguish or define “spiritual” essence of modern music.

When discussing this issue with Adil Hanine, the drummer of Hoba Hoba Spirit, he asked me, “What is spiritual music?” After a quick pause, he answered his own question: “Spiritual music is the heart’s expression.”

Regardless of this debate (although, as it is impossible to contradict Adil’s answer, there is not much of a debate at all), the festival organizers did a good job to showcase popular Moroccan artists, such as Nass El Ghiwane, Fnaire, Fes City Clan and Hoba Hoba Spirit.

Hoba Hoba Spirit actually played twice at the festival: on Saturday, June 14th, at Ait Skato, a venue outside the city center, and the following Sunday at Bab Boujloud, located in a plaza in the old medina. Both shows were well-attended: there were between twelve and fifteen thousand people in attendance for Saturday night’s show at Ait Skato, and about ten thousand showed up for Sunday afternoon’s performance.

As always, Hoba put on an outstanding show: they are one of the top live performers of all the bands I have ever seen. At each Hoba concert I have attended, the band has formed such a strong, immediate connection with the audience. Because these concerts represent a major form of social outlet for many young Moroccans, there is always so much energy in the audience, which, in turn, transfers onto the stage.

Below are some photographs and short videos from Saturday’s performance. I will post the media from Sunday’s show shortly…

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

2008-08-07T00:37:00.000+01:00

My apologies for any difficulties experienced while viewing this site. I have had some issues with my new posts as of late. I am not sure what is wrong, but will try to fix everything asap. More from Morocco and Cuba to come...

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC: THURSDAY

2008-08-04T13:21:00.002+01:00

First and foremost, apologies for this extended delay: my last two weeks in Morocco were extremely hectic. At the end of June, I left Morocco for Cuba, spending about a month in a Caribbean. Before I get ahead of myself, let me finish my analysis of the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music…

On Thursday, June 12th, the legendary Abdelwahab Doukkali performed at the Bab El Makina. Abdelwahab Doukkali is one of the most successful Moroccan musicians of all time; to give his level of popularity some perspective, the following night at the Bab Boujloud scene, there was a tribute band that just played Abdelwahab Doukkali compositions. A. Doukkali is more than a musician; he is an institution.

This evening’s performance was entitled, “Spiritual Dialogue Between Souls.” The orchestra of Rachid Regragui, a very young but already-celebrated conductor, accompanied A. Doukkali. Typically, A. Doukkali plays contemporary music; nonetheless, tonight, he only performed traditional, religious music.

Princess Lalla Salma was in attendance; and, naturally, the audience gave her a huge ovation. (Side note, in the Moroccan royal family, the woman married to the King is not given the title “Queen,” but instead, “Princess”).

Throughout the entire evening, the performance almost felt as if it were exclusively for the Princess: that is to say, it felt as if the audience was watching in on a private music session of the royal court. All of the musicians wore tuxedos, with the sole exception of A. Doukkali who wore traditional Moroccan garb. Needless to say, it was a majestic production.

Born in Fes, A. Doukkali sings and plays the lute. Although all of the vocals are in Arabic, it is clear that the lyrics of each song reflect typical themes of the music of Sufism: the individual’s quest for a union with God.

Accompanying A. Doukkali was an orchestra of forty musicians, giving the ensemble a very full sound. Truth be told, the music was more melodic than rhythmic: there were only two percussionists. Like many other nights of the Fes Festival, the audience was very engaged, often clapping the beat.

After almost three hours of music, the performance at Bab El Makina ended, and I headed over to the Dar Tazi scene. As with every other night at Dar Tazi, this evening’s performance showcased traditional Sufi musicians. Tonight featured the Derkaouiya Brotherhood, conducted by Abdelhamid Zouya. From Larache in North Morocco, the group consists of fourteen musicians. Despite its name, the group is not an exclusively male: there are two female performers. Because of the Derkaouiya Brotherhood is from the north of Morocco, there was a definite Andalusian influence: the group had two lute players and two violists.

As always, the place was full to capacity. Once again, the audience was obliged to sit, rather than have the freedom to dance. It does seem a little odd that dancing is discouraged; and I sincerely have no idea why the rules are what they are. Regardless, the performance at Dar Tazi was a great ending to an even better evening.

OVERDUE UPDATE

2008-07-24T16:24:00.001+01:00

Hi everyone. Apologies for the lack of updates over the five-plus weeks: I was in Cuba, and thanks to the embargo, was unable to update the website. Without a doubt, I have much to write, both from my final days in Morocco and my time in the Caribbean. Over the next few weeks, I will post those entries.

I actually am back in New York City! Very exciting to be home; nonetheless, I already miss my travels on the Bristol Fellowship....

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC: TUNISIA & MALI

2008-06-18T14:06:00.000+01:00

One of the true highlights of the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music was on Wednesday evening, at the Bab El Makina scene. Hadhra, a group of twenty musicians from Morocco, Tunisia and Iraq, performed a fantastic set: their two-a-half-hour musical journey was filled with energy and excitement.

Formed in Tunisia, Hadhra draws up traditional Sufi poetry to create a grand musical, and mystical, experience. While it is not entirely accurate to label Hadhra as traditional Sufi music, as there are obvious Western instrumental influences, the presence of Sufism is more than evident in their performance.

The evening began with two musicians on stage: one (blind) guitarist and another string player. The two musicians played a melodically relaxing prelude for about ten minutes or so. Then, a third musician, a keyboardist, joined them, for an addition five minutes. As I was waiting anxiously for a progression in the music, from out of nowhere, about twenty more musicians and more than a half dozen dancers took the stage – all dressed in unison.

The music was mostly vocal driven, lead by a male and female vocalist; however, there were hand drums, a violin, a saxophone, an accordion, and keyboards. Depending on song, there different number of drummers, ranging from none to six. Many of the songs began just with the hand drums, and then slowly added the other instruments and vocals. The importance of percussion was accentuated by the fact that there was one man on stage whose job was to change, and tune, the drums. I thoroughly enjoyed the several songs that had nice, short drum breaks.

In the early songs of the set, the music was not heavy on the rhythms; something expected with the Sufi music, as the lyrics profess a personal connection between the performer and God. I was blown away by the vocal ranges of some of the singers: the combination of such strong vocals, and such a large band, made for a huge sound.

As the performance progressed, more intricate rhythms were employed. The movement of the music was so smooth; from start to finish, there was a perfectly fluid evolution of the set.

The light show was extraordinary tonight; and once again, the venue of Bab El Makina provided the perfect atmosphere for a “sacred music” concert – sans, the flood of corporate tents near the entry, that is.

I love having the freedom of mobility that comes with a press pass: to experience the same performance from different vantage points makes for an even more enjoyable concert experience.

There was a very large turnout; perhaps this was in direct correlation with the delicious, free food that was available before the show…I am sure that the music would have meant even more to me if I had been able to understand the lyrics. Regardless, it was a wonderful evening; and perhaps my favorite “sacred” music performance of the festival.

But the night was not over. After the evening at Bab El Makina ended, the night at the Dar Tazi scene just began. Dar Tazi is the late night venue for the Fes Festival: only traditional Sufi musicians perform at this stage. (Hadhra, for example, would be deemed as not traditional enough to perform at Dar Tazi).

The Dar Tazi scene is tucked away in the medina. It is a rather small space: the stage is not so much a stage, as a mildly elevated platform. Unlike Bab El Makina, there is a space for general public. The catch, of course, is that this space is very limited; so, the security guards arbitrary decide who is able to attend the performance. Despite this flawed system of admission, the public space always is packed to capacity. The seating is a little odd, as everyone is required to sit on the (carpeted) ground.

Tonight’s performance was entitled, “Tartit Women’s Ensemble: Popular and Sacred Chants of Tuaregs.” The nine musicians – all but one were female – were from Mali.

The music had a very tribal feel to it; after all, it was the music of nomadic people. Many of the songs had a slow tempo: while the music was vocal-driven, there still was a modest influence of percussion-based rhythms. At certain times during the show, members of the band performed traditional Saharan dances.

Dar Tazi has a very strong “community” feel to it; it is an open-aired, natural setting, with trees and a fair amount of greenery. The crowd was very mellow; and it is clear that most of the audience were locals from the medina.

All in all, the contrast of the show at Bab El Makina and Dar Tazi made for a great day of music. Below are photographs and videos from both performances.

FES FESTIVAL OF SACRED MUSIC: BALI

2008-06-17T16:15:00.001+01:00

On Tuesday evening, I headed to Bab El Makina, the main venue for the Fes Festival, to check out a performance by Panti Pusaka Budaya, a theatre troupe from Bali. The group mixes theatre, dance and music to re-create traditional stories of Hindu folklore, specifically that of Lord Shiva, and his manifestation as Nataraja, the Hindu god of dance.

Gamelan, the musical accompaniment, is an orchestra of percussion instruments, chiefly gongs, cymbals, hand drums, xylophones and metallophones. This arrangement of instruments is not exclusive to percussion, as flutes, strings, and vocals are also employed in the music. Gamelan is unique to Indonesia, and actually pre-dates the arrival of Hinduism and Buddhism.

Before the show began, the artists burned incense on the stage, making the performance the feel like a genuine Hindu ceremony. Just as the artists took the stage, the call to prayer began from a near by mosque: it was a very cool contrast.

There were six musicians in all, and four dances – only one male, but was the leader of the troupe. Within Balinese Hinduism, music and dance go hand-in-hand; although, not surprisingly, I was much more interest in the musical aspect of the performance.

The orchestra consisted of two metallophone players, one gong player, one cymbal player, one percussionist, and a flutist. For several songs, additional, extra-large, flutes (or, some sort of wood-wind instrument) were brought out.

The percussion often played his drum with a stick in his right hand, and just with his palm on the left side of the drum. The drum was very similar to a South Indian dholak, although it was a bit larger. I am sure there is a direct lineage between this drum and the dholak, as it is only logical to conclude that with the musical instruments of India arrived to Bali in tandem with the emergence of Hinduism to the island.

The metallophones were the most interesting aspect of the performance: each instrument was laden with a series of beautiful carvings and paintings in red, black and gold. The craftsmanship truly was outstanding – not to mention the sound of the instruments was exception. The metallophone is played with a hammer; the hammer strikes a metal bar, and then the musician quickly grabs the metal bar to control the reverberations, to augment or lessen the sound. These metallophones are specifically called “gangsa” – a metallophone specific to Indonesia. (Metallophones are found all around the world; the most common example of one is the glockenspiel).

Most impressively, the two metallophone players always stayed in sync with one another: absolutely amazing mutual coordination, considering the complexity (and speed) of the scales they were playing. The rapid, staccato movement across the metal bars was fascinating to watch. The music had a scurrying feel to it that fit seamlessly to the dance sequences.

Because the performance was both music and dance, each song, or piece rather, was very long. While I, admittedly, did not pay much attention to the dancing, it was enjoyable to watch the dancers move to the rhythm of the music. Furthermore, the costumes of the dancers, specifically the masks, were all quite stunning in terms of the intricacy of the detail. The dancers frequently changed their masks, as each mask represented a different deity or religious figure – each time the dancer removed a mask, a short prayer was made.

The backdrop of the gate was incredible; a truly perfect setting for traditional music. I was thrilled to be able to see a Balinese gamelan performance, as on my original itinerary for the fellowship (way back when I was first drafting the proposal in August 2006), I had selected Bali as my first destination, because of the large Hindu diaspora there. For various reasons (well only one actually, that the U.S. State Department had listed Bali as unsafe for travel, due to a series of recent bombings), I had to alter my itinerary, and replaced Bali with Fiji. I have no regrets, though!

Photographs and videos, below; more posts about the Fes Festival to come...

FES FESTIVAL OF WORLD SACRED MUSIC

2008-06-13T18:47:00.001+01:00

When I arrived in Morocco in mid-March, I had every intention to depart by early May. After learning about the plethora of music festivals in May and June in this country, I reasoned that I had to stay in Morocco until the end of June. One festival in particular, the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music, correlated with my research so visibly that I knew I could not leave Morocco without attending it.

The fourteenth edition of the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music began on June 6th and ended on the 15th. The theme of this year’s festival was “Paths to creation” – according to the general director of the festival, Fatima Sadiqi, the theme, “highlights the contribution of innovation across the quest for the sacred, knowledge and inspiration.” 2008 is a very special year for Fes, as it marks the 1200th anniversary of the founding of the city. Fes, a former imperial city, has a very rich musical history; and the festival reflects the various musical traditions of this ancient city that have spanned many generations.

During the course of this week, I have refrained from instant journalism – immediate coverage of the Fes Festival – as I have needed time to collect my thoughts and accurately analyze the entirety of the festival.

Before I detail my various musical experiences at the Fes Festival, I feel obliged to give my unbridled opinion of the central tenets of the festival, in general. With my criticism of the festival, and, praise for it, I do have several suggestions that I will outline in a forthcoming post of my “final thoughts” about the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music.

In terms of the general organization, choice of venues and talent of the musicians, in short, the Fes Festival was outstanding. There was a wonderful mix of musicians from all over the world, including, but not limited to Pakistan, Lebanon, Iraq, Mali, Indonesia, India, Saudi Arabia and Senegal.

Without a doubt, from the very beginning there was an impressive level of professionalism. The festival organizers made many minor, but notably positive, gestures – such as having space at a Royal Mirage Hotel for the press to work and preparing a detailed program book in three different languages – all of which made covering the festival a very enjoyable, easy experience.

This professionalism extended to the performances themselves: each show was punctual, had good sound quality, and was well staffed. The organizers of the festival took full advantage of the history of the city: most of the venues were in the old city, actually inside of the ancient medina of Fes. Some of the scenes, particularly Bab El Makina and Dar Tazi, are some of the nicest locations I have ever seen for a music performance.

Although the Mawazine Festival had more venues (nine compared to four), it seemed as if there were more daily events at the Fes Festival. Unlike the Mawazine, the Fes Festival had workshops, academic seminars, activities for children, and art exhibitions all throughout the day - not to mention the constant flow of traditional and contemporary music. So, in effect, there was an overwhelming amount of options on any given day at the Fes Festival – the good kind of “overwhelming,” that is.

Despite all of these positive assessments, there is something about the general concept of the festival itself that is troubling. I have many reservations about the festival, not only in respect to how different forms of “sacred” music are presented to the audience, but also in respect to the fundamental ideology of the festival itself.

In sum, there were two overlying aspects of the festival that were most disconcerting: the surprising presence of materialism, and the overbearing sense of Orientalism. Surely, a festival that promotes “sacred” music should have no part of either of those –isms.

How “sacred” can a “Festival of World Sacred Music” be when the week pass costs almost $500? The tremendous cost of the festival tickets breeds an equally tremendous degree of inaccessibility: the average Moroccan earns less than a $10 per day, making the festival financially out of reach for the vast majority of the population. When did “sacred music” become an elitist endeavor? While there were several free concerts every day, the majority of these shows were of contemporary artists, and not the headlining “sacred” musicians.

At times, the festival seemed to promote materialism as much as sacred music. The festival was saturated with shameless corporatism: “A personal, spiritual connection with God, through music…brought to you by Royal Air Maroc, BMCE Bank and Meditel Communications.” There were thirty-four official “partners” and “sponsors” in all. (It must be noted that one patron in particular, the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, deserves to be separated from the corporate sponsors. Once again, it is wonderful and truly commendable that the King has made such a genuine, and generous, effort to embolden the music scene in Morocco).

I fully recognize that producing a festival of this magnitude costs millions and millions of dollars, and simply put, corporate sponsorship is mandatory to finance a festival. But, maybe, just maybe, it is rather sacrilegious to unite “sacred music” with such an abundance of corporate enterprises.

The Bab El Makina scene, the festival’s main venue, was littered with tents of the festival sponsors and various business ventures. Century 21, the largest real estate company in the world, even had a tent. Think about that for a moment: among the ticket-holders, there is so much wealth that someone might go to a concert and end up buying a house in Morocco. With such rampant capitalism, how can any sense of piety still exist?

In the most basic sense, sacred music seeks to create a spiritual connection with the Divine. Religious (sacred) music often is performed in the confines of a holy institution, like a church or temple, to eliminate worldly distractions. In the moments of a sacred music performance, is the stage not the temple? It is a doctrine of all religions to disavow any sort of commerce within the physical space of the institution? (Yes, yes, I have been to plenty of Hindu temples that sell souvenirs, and the Vatican does have a gift shop). Surely John 2:16 is not just a Christian prospect – materialism has no place inside of a mosque or synagogue or any sort of holy sanctuary, for that matter. How can proper devotion to the Divine be made when a vender is hawking Hagaan Daz a hundred feet from the stage? At what point do we distinguish between reverence and exploitation?

It is sadly ironic because the respective ideological roots of all of these different forms of “sacred” music were the antithesis of the materialism found at the Fes Festival.

Another reservation for me to endorse the festival is the immense sense of Orientalism that surrounds the festival. The concept of Orientalism, as written about by the great scholar Edward Said, essentially states that in the West, we have a very skewed view of the Eastern cultures. Strictly in terms of “religious studies,” some Westerners perceive Eastern religions as more “mystical” than Western traditions, and thus they are “better.”(You see this practice quite frequently in India, Westerns that “adopt” Hinduism because of the esoteric essence of an Eastern religion)

In a certain sense, the general idea of a festival dedicated to “World Sacred Music” is the definition of Orientalism: a bunch of extremely wealthy Westerners gather together to find the “spiritual” element in different forms of religious music. Since when did the bourgeoisie, the upper-crust, become so pious?

Sacred music is an exclusive union between the performer and God (the Absolute): through the hypnotic music, the musician transcends our immediate reality and is able to connect with God. While observers are able to comprehend the mystical experience that the musician is undergoing, it would be preposterous to assume that the audience has the same metaphysical experience as the performer.

Irrefutably, it is possible for more than one individual, as in a group of performers, to have a simultaneous, occult experience. To clarify: for example, in gnaoua, during public celebrations, it is common for participants, who are not musicians, to fall into a stance of trance. Listening to the rhythms of the music can create a transcendental experience. But there is a different between a dancing group of devote observers, and a seated, suit-and-tie audience.

The most elementary reason why the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music must be labeled as an Orientalist endeavor is that the audience is not encouraged to partake in the music, but simply to observe it, through an academic lens.

Most genuinely, I assert that there is nothing wrong with that concept - to study a foreign, religious idiosyncrasy but not adhere to it. On the most basic level, the ticket-holders at the Fes Festival could be applauded for having such a tolerant, global outlook. In the world of today, one that is growing smaller and smaller each day, yet alarmingly more xenophobic and isolationist, it is so essential to have certain individuals who seek to bridge the cultural barriers between the East and the West. After for this reason alone, I do support certain aspects of the Fes Festival.

Yet, there is a very thin line between attending a "sacred" music performance because of genuine, academic interest, and attending the said performance for reasons because it is “chic.” Seldom did everyone in the audience stay for the full show: a very disrespectful act, especially considering these were “sacred” music performances. Would you walk out of church, synagogue, temple, or mosque while the religious service is still going on?

I readily admit that many individuals that attend the festival do not deserve to be grouped as “jet-setter” types. While I know it is unfair to label all of the attendees as one, I merely am reflecting my observations from a week of attending performances at the festival.

Clearly, I have very strong feelings about the essence of the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music. Believe it or not, as you will read in future posts specifically about my experiences at the performances, I genuinely enjoyed the festival – despite my many, many reservations about it. Take what I wrote with a grain of salt: as Man Ray once said, “All critics should be assassinated.”

Reviews of various shows, with photographs and videos, will be posted shortly. Also, please ignore the "date" of this post (6/13); I am not sure why it says that, as I wrote it yesterday, on June 17th.

HOBA IN RABAT

2008-06-11T12:59:00.008+01:00

Last week, I attended a Hoba Hoba Spirit concert in Rabat. Held at the Moulay Abdallah Sports Complex, the show was a private event; nonetheless, there was still over a thousand people in attendance. As always, the band was on fire: considering the concert was a sports arena, the sound was quite good. Below are some photographs from the show; it seems the tech crew went a little crazy with the fog machine…

Saad was amazed to learn that Morocco had a cricket federation.

THE TANJAZZ FESTIVAL

2008-06-04T16:08:00.011+01:00

Last weekend, I attended the Tanjazz Festival in Tangier (often spelt Tanger or Tangiers). As I did not partake in the full festival – it begun on Wednesday and I arrived on Friday – I am not asserting the Tanjazz was a complete bust; but, from my experiences, it simply was pretty mediocre.

Indeed, Tangier is a wonderful town for a festival: it is a beautiful setting for anything, for that matter. Located on the northern most of Morocco, the narrow Gibraltar Straight is the only thing that separates Tangier from Spain. Because of the proximity to Europe, the audience at Tanjazz is very “jet-setter,” if you will – a very business-like crowd, at times.

Strictly in terms of the music, it was a somewhat disappointing experience. I had heard so much about Tanjazz– particularly the late night jam sessions – that I had very high expectations for the quality of music at the festival.

The “jam session” on Friday night at the Palais de Institutions Italiennes featured some pretty remedial musicians. Perhaps I am bitter, as this “jazz jam session” did not even feature a live rhythm section: no drums or bass, just a keyboardist to fill those roles! An obvious absence of the spirit of jazz music…

But don’t worry, the music on Saturday was terrific, even if the organization of the program was not. Just after eight o’clock on Saturday night, I arrived at the Scene Veolia for a performance by Mokhat Samba, a Moroccan-Senegalese drummer. Unfortunately, due to a last-minute scheduling change, the music started about 75 minutes late: even though this was a free concert, the crowd, rightfully so, was not too pleased with the disorganization of the festival organizers.

When Mokhat Samba finally did take the stage, everyone quickly forgot about the long wait and got right into the music. As I have written so many times before, I find nothing more enjoyable than watching a “drummer’s band.” It was all too evident that Mokhat was the principal song composer: his drum kit stood at the front, center of the stage, and during each number, he provided the band with much more than just the backbeat.

In terms of raw talent, Mokhat Samba has to be one of the better drummers I have seen all year: some people were just born to play drums and he definitely falls into that category.
Sadly, because the show started so late, I was unable to stay to see it in its entirety, as I had tickets to another performance, an eight-piece jazz band from Belgium, called Jazz Me Do.

As you can deduce from their name, Jazz Me Do reinterprets songs originally written by The Beatles. While the idea behind Jazz Me Do is quite kitschy, their execution was most excellent. The compositions of each song were entirely re-written, while still staying true to the original version. Focusing on the early numbers from The Beatles catalogue, Jazz Me Do played a fluid and enjoyable set. The jazzification (okay, that’s not a word) of classics like, “Eleanor Rigby,” “Drive My Car,” and “Can’t Buy Me Love,” was an interesting new take on those timeless Lennon/McCartney songs. The most memorable number was, “Girl” – the band did a very clever reinterpretation of this John Lennon track from the Rubber Soul record. I don’t doubt that the Fab Four themselves would approve of this musical venture.

The jam session on Saturday night was pretty good: it certainly was better than the night before, as there was a live rhythm section this time!

After the Mawazine Festival, almost any music festival feels rather weak in comparison – I will readily admit my immediate partiality. I definitely enjoyed my time in Tangier; but, truth be told, it was not one of the better music events I have seen here in Morocco. I have no regrets about going, and would even recommend attending the Tanjazz Festival in the future, if as an excuse to see the town of Tangier.

Just under the clouds sits Spain.

An empty stage...

...makes for an angry crowd.

Finally!

Jazz Me Do

The gardens of the Italian Palace

Saturday night jam session - this time with a rhythm section.

Amine and I at the (former) end of world.

MAWAZINE: JUANES & FINAL THOUGHTS

2008-05-27T19:11:00.005Z

On Friday night, I went to the Juanes concert at the Bouregreg. There were several reasons that drew me to the Colombian pop-sensation's concert – and let’s just leave it at I wasn’t attending for the musical experience.

While I have no interest in pop-rock as a genre, I must admit that I was impressed by performance of the band and Juanes himself – I did not realize that he was such a polished guitarist. Often, music critics overlook the fact that MTV-type, commercial musicians are some of the highest trained musicians in the world: each member of Juanes’ band was very talented. The crowd adored Juanes; and it was an enjoyable concert, for sure.

Although the Mawazine Festival ended on Saturday, I opted not to attend the final, headline show of Whitney Houston – Juanes was enough pop music for me.

The organization of the Mawazine Festival was outstanding: everything from the lineup itself to the light shows to the sound quality was stellar. It is fantastic that the King of Morocco and government are supporting arts and culture in this manner: I recently read that, across all nine venues, approximately 120,000 people attended the festival each day.

I also read that the organizers had a budget between 22 and 24 million dirhams (about $3.1 million dollars). While that, of course, is a lot of money, considering the fact that there were nine days of music with nine different stages, it is very impressive that they were able to stretch the budget to be able to bring in so many accomplished musicians. On that note, as I have written before, the line up was fantastic, as there was such a comprehensive list of artists that performed. Because of the diverse lineup, I was exposed to so many new artists – the ultimate purpose of any concert-going experience.

Without a doubt, the absolute highlight of the week was the concert of Hoba Hoba Spirit; although, Zao, of Congo, was the best individual performer of the festival, by my book.

I cannot express my appreciate to everyone at Hit Radio, and most specifically Younes Boumehdi, for their assistance in helping me cover the festival. What a week

MAWAZINE: HOBA HOBA SPIRIT

2008-05-25T16:01:00.017Z

Over the past two months, I have been very fortunate to make many wonderful contacts throughout the Moroccan music scene. Although the original parameters of the proposal for my fellowship indicate that my research pertains to drumming and drum crafting in different religious and spiritual traditions, while in Morocco, the focus of my research has expanded to include a more contemporary dynamic. (The overlying question remains, as to whether “spirituality” exists in modern music. In short, and I will expand on this in the next few weeks, is that I believe “spirituality” exists in almost all genres of music, traditional and contemporary, as music is an expression of the heart).

As I have reported earlier, much of my time in Morocco has been spent in Casablanca, living with Adil Hanine, the drummer of Hoba Hoba Spirit, a very popular Moroccan band. Indeed, Adil’s connection to the music scene here has been an indispensable asset for my research; nevertheless, we have become such close friends that it is like we are family – something that obviously transcends anything pertinent to my research.

I have been well aware that Hoba Hoba Spirit is very successful; yet, until Thursday night’s performance, my conception of just how popular Hoba is was completely redefined. During the sound check in the late afternoon, I was talking to Hisham, the band’s manager, about the show. Probably about a hundred fifty fans or so arrived around 4pm, even though the show wasn’t going to start until 9pm, so I was curious as to how many people would come to the show. When I asked how many people were anticipated to attending the concert, he asserted that “50,000” were expected. While the venue was more than suitable to house that many people, I was pretty skeptical that that many people would turn out for the show – the only other time I saw Hoba Hoba Spirit perform there was a crowd of about 2,500 people (the “girls only” show), a very good sized crowd, but no where near 50,000. Furthermore, there are only a handful of musical acts that can draw such a large crowd. So, I figured that I had misheard Hisham, and that he said, “15,000,” a seemingly more reasonable number, although still very impressive.

After the sound check was finished, the members of the band and myself went to Hisham’s apartment to kill sometime until the show. Some of the guys seemed particularly nervous about the anticipation of playing a big show – an absolutely reasonable feeling. The band was performing at the Qamra scene, a huge outdoor stage near the Rabat bus station – in fact, Qamra is the largest stage of the Mawazine Festival.

Around 8:30, we returned to the venue, it was absolutely packed with people – it turned out that Hisham’s prediction was wrong, after all. By just after 9 o’clock when the band took stage, 70,000 (!!!) people were in attendance. (The organizers of the festival confirmed this is an accurate statistic). Granted, this was a free performance; nonetheless, that does not undermine the amazing feat of drawing a crowd of that many people.

I was entirely overwhelmed by the size of the crowd: being surrounded by that many people is an indescribable sensation. There were people for as far as you could see; the crowd even spilled out onto the streets! (Fortunately for me, I was right up next to the stage, thanks to my pass, so I did not have to be lost in the sea of people).

What was most impressive about the (astronomical) size of the crowd was that almost everyone knew all the lyrics to almost all of the songs. That is to say, it was not just 70,000 people that showed up to see a free concert; it was 70,000 devout Hoba fans! I cannot imagine, as a musician, entertaining that many people; it must be an incredible feeling to make so many people so happy.

Of course, I will readily admit that, as I have developed lasting friendships with members of the band, I am a bit biased; regardless, Hoba Hoba Spirit’s performance was one of the single best concerts I have ever attended. There was so much energy – both on stage and throughout the crowd - that made for such a memorable experience, a true highlight of my year on the Bristol Fellowship. It is actually pretty funny how energetic the band was, considering how languid most of the guys were before the show. (The one exception was Adil, who was so hyped up before the show that he kept on telling me, “We’re going to burn Rabat down!”)

In terms of the band’s performance, they were outstanding, to say the least. Of course, I have seen Hoba play in Casablanca before; yet, this performance was head-and-shoulders better than that show. Everyone just clicked and played their best; and thus, the band sounded incredible. (Side note: all of the shows at the Mawazine Festival have had excellent sound quality, a testament to the professionalism of the festival’s organizers and engineers).

For just under two hours, Hoba Hoba Spirit played almost nonstop. The band had such fluid set list: there were minimal breaks, as almost every song bridged straight into the ensuing one. There was a concrete cohesion with the set list: the band opened with their hit, “Radio Hoba,” and did a reprise of the song for the encore.

Like any live show, it is very difficult to describe the sound of the show: to be as concise as possible, the show was very rock, very reggae, very punk, very gnaoua, and very, very cool.

Musically, the band has such a unique sound: because they are able to employ the sounds of so many different genres, all their songs sound very distinct. To give the band another level of expansiveness, everyone but Saad (the bassist), provides vocals. Surely, Reda, the lead guitarist, would be considered the lead singer as well; yet, the other guys do sing quite often. Furthermore, all of the members that contribute vocals sound very different from one another; so that expands the musical range of the band. Lastly, because so many of the members are capable of singing, the vocal harmonies are always superb.

There were so many great numbers that it is impossible to pick a single favorite; but, I think one of the highlights of the evening was, “Marock’n Roll,” a song led by Reda. Perhaps this was one of the most memorable songs as it is sung in English; but, it is such a catchy number, especially as Reda plays harmonica on it. Further, Adil’s smooth drum beat perfects the song.

By the end of the show, it seemed that everyone in the crowd was covered with sweat and dust: because most of the venue was just a dirt ground and almost everyone was dancing, dust caked the entire Qamra scene.

After meeting up with the band backstage to congratulate them on such an incredible performance, we all eventually departed for the Chellah, a site of Phoenician and Roman ruins with to a beautiful garden and palace-like facilities. There was a banquet (in other words, a feast) for the band, as provided by the organizers of the Mawazine Festival. The high life, indeed…

I spoke to Adil earlier today, and learned that on Saturday, the band was given a gift from the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, in recognition for their performance at the Mawazine Festival. Congratulations to everyone in the band for that award!

Below are a few videos and a bunch of pictures from the show. (The light show was awesome and the pictures don’t do it justice). To be completely honest, I was so engrossed in the performance that I didn’t really feel like taking the best videos/pictures possible. Being in the thick of the crowd was an experience I couldn’t pass up on: sure, it would have been nice just to stand by the stage the whole, but there was such much electricity throughout the audience, that I just had to get out there and dance!

The sound on the videos is pretty poor; the concert itself had extremely good sound quality, so watch the videos with that in mind. Also, I really wish I could have gotten an aerial photograph to give you all an ideal of just how many people were they, but I left my helicopter at home. I am still so impressed that 70,000 people came for the show!

Enjoy, and do yourself a favor, and get a hold of one of Hoba Hoba Spirit’s albums!

MAWAZINE: FRESHLY GROUND & OMAR PENE

2008-05-22T14:03:00.014Z

On Wednesday evening, I headed to the Hay Ryad venue – I am staying just a few minutes walk from the stage, so it is unbelievably convenient. Freshly Ground, a South African group, composed of a female lead vocalist, a female violinist and keyboardist, a male flute and saxophonist, a male bassist, a male guitarist and a male drummer.

The music was a fluid mix of reggae and lighter rock; on the songs that employed the violin, there was almost a “country” feel to it. (Perhaps if you are familiar with Willie Nelson’s reggae album Countryman, the concept of “country-reggae” may not be so abstract).

The highlight of the show was a cover of Bob Marley’s “Zimbabwe,” a classic song about the struggle for equality in the troubled nation. (It is quite depressing to think that Marley wrote the song in 1979 to draw attention to the political strife in Zimbabwe; and today, the Robert Mugabe regime still maintains control of the country, despite his recent defeat in a democratic vote for the presidency).

The second act of the evening was Omar Pene, a smooth vocalist from Senegal. Having recorded over thirty records, Omar Pene is more of an institution than musician, in terms of Senegalese music.

The band is composed of Omar Pene on vocals, two female background vocalist, a bassist, an electric guitarist, a keyboardist, a synth player, a kora player (a 21-stringed harp-like lute), a percussionist (playing three different types of djembes) and a drummer (on a regular Western kit).

I had never seen a kora before; I feel so lucky to have the privilege to be exposed to so much new music (and, thus instruments, even if they are not in the percussion family). Because of the tremendous diversity of music at the Mawazine festival, I have been introduced to several new styles of music, which always makes for an enriching experience.

As for the music of Omar Pene, the first half of the show was rather mellow, but the second half really picked up.

The percussionist was superb: on one of his djembes, there was a metal shaker, exactly like an Ainu djembe player I saw perform in Kyoto, Japan. As the music began to be more upbeat, the percussionist used a drum stick on his hand drums to augment the power of the sound made from each drum. Sometimes it is difficult to coordinate multiple rhythms in a performance; yet, the percussionist and drummer played together seamlessly, often trading triplet-filled fills back and forth.

What was most impressive about the performance was the devotion the audience: the VIP area in front of stage (reserved for press and other artists) was absolutely packed. In fact, proportionally, there were more people in the VIP section than general admission section: it is always a positive testimony to the credibility of the artist on stage when the crowd is filled with other musicians.

At the end of the show, I ran into Saad, of Hoba Hoba Spirit – H2S performs tomorrow night at the Qamra scene and I am really looking forward to it! Below are a bunch of photographs and videos. As always, enjoy!

Freshly Ground, from South Africa, at Hay Ryad

Omar Pene of Senegal

View from the soundboard on the side of the stage.

A guest MC, also from Senegal

(Thanks Julie for taking this photo!)

MAWAZINE: ISSAC DELGADO & SCHÄL SICK BRASS BAND

2008-05-21T14:22:00.016Z

There is something very special about attending a concert at the open-aired Bouregreg scene: just behind the historic Oudayas district, the Bouregreg has a clear view of Sale, the sister city of Rabat, which is located just across the river. Because the venue has a large capacity (about 90% of which is free for the public), there always a good turn out, and thus a positive atmosphere for a concert.

Tuesday night at the Bouregreg featured the salsa superstar, Issac Delgado (yes, that is how you spell his first name). Born in Havana, Cuba, Issac Delgado is best known for his smash hit, “La Vida Es Un Carnaval.”

Like most salsa ensembles, Issac Delgado’s band was rather large, fourteen members in total; specifically, keyboards, an electric standup bass, two trombones, two trumpets, one baritone saxophone, a synthesizer, two background male singers, congos, bongos and a timbales “kit”.

The percussion section was fabulous: the main drummer played a hybrid drum kit, which included a bass drum, two big timbales, a snare drum, two crash cymbals, a pair of mini hi hats, two metal cowbells and a jam block (a plastic wood block). It was a pretty neat set up. In addition to that player, there was a hand percussionist who played three large congo drums, and a third percussionist who played the smaller bongo drums and the occasional cowbell.

As a drummer, the rhythms in salsa, timba and mambo music are always extraordinary. For a clarification, timba is a form of salsa that is originates from Cuba – it is very similar to salsa, but is distinct. Mambo also is similar to salsa; yet, interestingly enough, mambo music is directly derived from West African music used in religious ceremonies. In fact, the word “mambo,” can be translated as, “conversation with god”.

What is so enjoyable about salsa music is that each song tells a story: the composition of the music follows the flow of the story, thus allowing each piece to be distinct. While Cuban Spanish can be somewhat difficult, due to the plethora of slang and dropped syllables, for the most part, I was able to understand the lyrics, or at least the general message of each song.

The crowd was really into the music: countless people were dancing, and there were even three sets of dancers on the stage, at various points in the concert. Issac Delgado often engaged the crowd, trying to get everyone to clap to the beat: I must admit that is always amusing to see an audience try to clap a salsa beat!

Start to finish, the show was outstanding: I am so eager to spend time in Cuba and listen to salsa, timba and mambo in a localized context.

After the show ended, I took a taxi to the Hay Ryad venue to catch the end of the set of the Schäl Sick Brass Band. Formed in Cologne, Germany, the band consists of a female vocalist, a trombonist, a trumpeter, a clarinetist, a tuba player, electric guitarist, drummer and djembe/hand drum player.

To be completely honest, I find it difficult to fully enjoy a concert when I show up two-thirds into the set; yet, the band had such an interesting, full sound, it was easy to get right into the music.

Compared to the other performances I have seen so far at the Mawazine Festival, the Schäl Sick Brass Band had a much “harder” sound. Although they are a “brass band,” there a serious rock influence to their music. Nonetheless, oddly enough, there are strong overtones of Turkish music. So, in sum, they sound like a rock, brass, Turkish band…a strange combination, but it actually sounded great!

It was neat that there was not a bass player, and the tuba player filled in that piece of the rhythm section; unique, indeed. As for the drummer and percussionist, both were most excellent. Moreover, at least in the songs I saw, it seemed that there was a drum solo or two (or three!) in each piece. Of course, for me, I couldn’t ask for much more.

I wish I was able to have seen the Schäl Sick Brass Band concert in its totality; but I am happy that I stayed for the full Issac Delgado show. Once again, this evening was an enjoyable contrast of genres of music.

Below are videos and pictures from each show. It should be easy to distinguish between the two concerts…

The Bouregreg Scene. You can catch a glimpse of the Oudayas in the background.

Issac Delgado himself - yes, he spells his name with two Ss not two As.

Che looks on...

Nothing but the best Cuban rhythms

The crowd chanted, "¡Cuba, sí!"

Salsa without dance is like chips without salsa.

The Schäl Sick Brass Band, from Germany, perform at the Hay Ryad venue

MAWAZINE: AL DI MEOLA

2008-05-21T14:19:00.000Z

Around 11am on Monday morning, I arrived at the Hilton Hotel for Al Di Meola’s press conference only to find out that it was canceled. That evening, I attended a performance by Al Di Meola, the legendary jazz-fusion guitarist. Fortunately, thanks to my press pass, I was able to spend some time backstage before the beginning on the show. I did (very briefly) meet Mr. Di Meola, but, more interestingly, I was able to have a long chat with Gumbi Ortiz, Al Di Meola’s longtime percussionist.

Gumbi (pronounced “Goom-bee”) is a really funny and warm individual: although he is a celebrated and internationally famous percussionist, in no way did he give off an air of pretentiousness. After I explained the dynamic of my research fellowship, we had some really compelling conversations about drums and spirituality. As he was talking a mile-a-minute (and we were covering so many different angles of the topic), there is no way I can transcribe everything we discussed.

One of the more interesting parts of our conversation was when we were talking about spirituality in jazz music. Gumbi contended that jazz drumming is, “more revolutionary than evolutionary.” That is to say, unlike other genres of music, such as gospel, jazz does have any direct connection to “spirituality,” as in a formalized religious institution.
In terms of my project, he commented how important it is for me to have this exposure to the different genres of music around the world. Gumbi really helped me appreciate the fact that the Mawazine Festival takes places in Africa – the cradle of all music. Simply put, it is just really amazing to think of the festival in that context. It was a really wild, memorable experience just to be able to chat about my journeys this year with one of the finest percussionists in the world.

Gumbi, a Cuban-American born in the South Bronx, recommended that while in Cuba, I make sure to check out the “bata”– a form of drumming that fuses Cuban and Nigerian beats. He also said I couldn’t miss attending a santeria ceremony; to see how the music is used in the ritual sacrifices.

Moving on…

The performance was at the Mohammed V Theatre in central Rabat. It is a standard theatre, red-plush seats and all – nothing extraordinary. More importantly, the acoustics were excellent. Not surprisingly, the show was completely sold out. The audience gave the band a huge reception at the start of the show – Mr. Di Meola commented that it was truly a “heartfelt” gesture.

“Al Di Meola and World Symphony” consists of Mr. Di Meola on acoustic guitar, a second acoustic guitar player from Greece, an accordion player from Italy and Gumbi on hand percussion (darbuka and cajon). The darbuka is a North African hand drum; basically, it is identical to a djembe, with the exception that it is not made out of wood. The cajon is exactly what its name (in Spanish) indicts: it is a wooden box, and is commonly used in flamenco and Cuban music.

Because this was an acoustic show, most of the numbers were rather soothing. That being said, often in the middle of a “lighter” song, Mr. Di Meola would burst out with light speed riff – remember, he is most famous for being one of the fastest guitar pickers of all time. Surely, Mr. Di Meola has an unprecedented level of technical skill.

Unfortunately for me, overall, there was minimal percussion during the show; nonetheless, there were several times when Gumbi provided a prevalent beat.

For the encore, the group played “Mediterranean Sundance,” one of the tracks off of the 1977 album Elegant Gypsy. They performed for just under two hours in total.

Officially, cameras were not allowed – not even for the “press.” I was able to get a few shots and one short video in, so enjoy!

The great Gumbi Ortiz and myself.

MAWAZINE: ZAO & SUPER RAIL BAND DE BAMAKO

2008-05-20T18:26:00.001Z

On Sunday night, once again, I was presented with a crucial choice of what concerts to attend – bear in mind that nine different venues have shows going on all at the same time.
I boiled my decision down to two stages: either I would head to the largest venue, the Bouregreg, to see Los Van Van (a very famous group from Cuba), or check out the smaller Hay Ryad scene to catch performances by groups from Congo and Mali. My good friend Amine recommended that I attend the concerts of the African musicians, as I will experience plenty of Cuban music this summer in Havana.

Just after nine o’clock, Zao, an Afrobeat band from Brazzaville, Congo, took the stage. The band consisted of a bassist, guitarist, keyboardist, trombonist, trumpeter, percussionist, drummer, two female vocalists and the singer (Zao). Within the first thirty seconds of the concert, I knew I would not regret my decision.

The band opened with an extra-funky jam, and then out came Zao, wearing perhaps the greatest hat ever made (see pictures below). I think the best way to describe Zao is that his body is not nearly big enough to fit his persona. Never before have I seen an individual with a stronger stage presence than Zao. By the truest definition of the word, Zao is animated; he is such a vivacious character that he is almost cartoon like – and I say that as a compliment. There is something magical about his ability to instantaneously connect with the audience through his music.

The dialogue Zao created with the audience was in French, Lingala (Congolese), Arabic, and a little English. Regardless of what language he was speaking, his message was always clear: often he sung of the necessity to end war as a means of diplomacy.

As for the music, it was the ultimate fusion: a handful of West African rhythms, a splash of reggae, a hint of jazz and a whole lot of funk! This mixture created for very complicated rhythms. The drummer was absolutely outstanding; definitely the best of the festival, to date.

The crowd adored Zao: the gratis-section was packed and people were dancing throughout the entire set. This concert was probably the most enjoyable show I have seen all year, and ranks as one of my all-time favorites. Of course, the short videos I will post are an unfair testimony to how great the music was: like most concerts, you simply had to be there to experience the greatness of the performance.

(Side note: I actually just bought one of his records of the iTunes store; and, as expected, it is not as exciting as the live show but is very good. Just make sure to purchase the album, “L’aiguille,” as, apparently, there is a heavy metal band also named Zao!)

Towards the end of the show, Zao introduced each of the band members, and in turn, each member soloed. Zao is a very humble band leader, indeed. As Zao’s set ended, I began to wonder how does (can?) the following act, Super Rail Band de Bamako, top this one? Quite honestly, I knew that it would be an impossible feat.

After a brief intermission, the Super Rail Band de Bamako, from Mali, took the stage. The band leader, who played the djembe, gave some background information on Mali (i.e. on the population and location). It was actually pretty cool that he would make the effort to teach the audience a little about where he comes from and tidbits about his culture. (Granted, Mali is very close to Morocco, so I am sure most of the audience knew most of the information; but, nonetheless, it was a neat gesture).

The band consisted of a djembe player, two male vocalists, a lead guitarist, a rhythm guitarist, a bassist, a percussionist (who played congos) and a drummer. Because of the abundance of percussion, the beats were much heavier than that of Zao’s music. Interestingly enough, there were a lot of straight rhythms (as in, not broken feels), mostly in 16th note feels.

I actually thoroughly enjoyed the Super Rail Band de Bamako’s performance – but, of course, it was no Zao. This has been my favorite night of the Mawazine Festival, without a doubt! Pictures and videos are below. I would post more videos, but it takes about 90 minutes to upload every 45 second video...grrr!

ZAO!

Best. Hat. Ever.

Pure electricity on stage

Super Rail Band de Bamako

MAWAZINE: GORAN BREGOVIC & TONY ALLEN

2008-05-19T08:16:00.002Z

My singular complaint of the Mawazine Festival is that on many nights, there are too many concerts that I want to attend – I sheepishly admit that this is a good predicament to be in, though. Furthermore, many of the venues are spread throughout the city; so it can take a half an hour (not including traffic) to get from one scene to another. On Saturday night, for instance, there were three acts (at three different venues) that I really wanted to check out: Ziggy Marley, Goran Bregovic and Tony Allen.

Despite this dilemma, it should be highlighted that there is a major advantage of having so many venues in so many different locations: this format allows the general public to attend more shows. My friend Amine pointed out that many citizens of Rabat are not able to easily move around the city (due to expensive cab fares and other factors); so, by having venues in each section of the city, theoretically, there is always a stage nearby.

Anyways, on Saturday night, I ended up attending the Goran Bregovic concert at the Bouregreg with several friends, including Amine (who I am staying with) and most of the members of Hoba Hoba Spirit. Bregovic scores many films (yes, including “Borat”) and has over a dozen solo records. The concert itself constituted the strangest live-music experience of my life: Goran Bregovic’s music is the epitome of unique.

Born in Saravejo, Bosnia, Mr. Bregovic plays with a massive, twenty-nine-piece band. Mr. Bregovic sits in the front of the stage, plays the electric guitar and sings. The band consists of a string section, a brass and woodwinds section, a male choir, two female vocalists and a bass drum player. Although Mr. Bregovic employed minimal percussion into his music, there were very strong beats, and often, in “abnormal” time signatures, like 7/4.

My initial reaction to the music was that it sounded like Balkan wedding music…but astronomically more expansive. Because of the sheer size of the band, there are so many layers of music: in the most positive sense, listening to Goran Bregovic is a very overwhelming experience.

After staying for an hour or so, the members of Hoba Hoba Spirit and I decided to check out Tony Allen, who was performing in Hay Ryad – on the opposite side of the city.

Tony Allen, born in Nigeria, is credited for founding Afrobeat music – a mix of jazz, funk and African rhythms. Mr. Allen was the drummer for Fela Kuti, the most famous Afrobeat musician.

Saturday evening’s band consisted of a bass player, guitarist, saxophonist, trumpets, hand percussionist, and of course, Tony Allen himself. Mr. Allen was playing a modest five-piece, cherry-colored Yahama kit.

Although Mr. Allen is approaching seventy-years-old, his chops are still in full form. Because of my press pass, I was almost able to get right on the stage: it was incredible to have such a close vantage point. Watching his jelly-like hands was inspiring.

Considering that it was raining, there was a good turn out for the show. I was disappointed that I was unable to stay for all of the Goran Bregovic show, but I would not have forgiven myself if I passed up on seeing the legendary Tony Allen.

Saturday night was a strange mixture of music – Eastern European and Nigerian – yet, that just highlights the diversity of the Mawazine Festival. The videos are below the pictures.

Redefining the notion of "big band" music

Adil can't get enough of those Balkan beats.

Goran Bregovic plays the guitars. Tuba player wears best pants/boots combination ever.

Tony Allen at the Hay Ryad scene

MAWAZINE FESTIVAL: RHYTHMS OF THE WORLD

2008-05-18T14:54:00.007Z

On Friday afternoon, I arrived at Hit Radio and then was taken to the Villa des Arts to pick up my press pass for the Mawazine Festival. (Oddly enough, on the badge, my name is listed as “Jesse Mahamlan” – not exactly sure as to why). I cannot express how grateful I am that Younes at Hit Radio was able to arrange this for me.

Founded in 2001, the “Mawazine Festival: Rhythms of the World” is held in Rabat during the third week of May. The festival is nine days long across nine different venues. There are over one hundred concerts with artists from forty different countries. The festival lineup is very eclectic: everything from the Moroccan Royal Symphony to the Colombian pop sensation Juanes to jazz legend Al Di Meola to the world-famous Whitney Houston. Needless to say, there is a wonderful mix of Moroccan and international acts.

Thanks to my press pass, I was able to attend the opening ceremony for the festival – it was a “by invitation only” event. Held at the Villa des Arts, an incredible outdoor complex filled with fountains, statues and gardens in central Rabat, the inaugural event was laden with pomp and delicious pastries. The Mariachis Real de Oro, a ten-piece mariachi band from Mexico, played a short set as the invitees arrived to the venue.

After the president of the festival delivered the opening words (in Arabic and French), the Seventh Edition of the Mawazine Festival: Rhythms of the World officially began. The Luisito Quintero Percussion Madness Experience, a group from Venezuela, played the gala.

The band is composed of Luisto, who plays the drum kit and timbales, a bassist, a guitarist, a keyboardist, a synthesizer player and a hand percussionist (who plays five big conga drums). This may come as little surprise but I absolutely love it when the drummer leads the band. After the first few numbers, it was clear that the music was entirely composed around the drumming. Seldom a drummer is the musical director of a group; so, when the drummer is the principal musician, it is a very special experience.

Luisito also provided the vocals for the group; although, most of the songs were purely instrumentals. A left-handed drummer, Luisito plays a five-piece, silver-wrapped Pearl drum kit, with a (very small) 18” bass drum. He also plays the timbales like the late legend Mr. Tito Puente – in fact, they have shared the stage together.

The LQPME mixes rhythms from Venezuela, Brazil, the Caribbean and Cameroon – before each song, the band would state where the beat originates from, so it really great to have those clarifications. Fortunately for me, the band interacted with the audience in English. I always enjoy when there is a lot of dialogue between the artist and the audience. I must admit that it was difficult to listen such rhythmic music and not be able to dance!

After eating dinner near Place Ibn Yassine (and by “dinner” I mean pizza), I headed over to the Bouregreg, an outdoor venue sandwiched in between the water and the Oudayas (the old part of the city). The Bouregreg is the largest stage of the Mawazine Festival. The layout of the venue is very clever: in the front, closest to the stage there is the press and VIP section, then a mid-level pay section, and then the back area is all free. It is a really good system as it is unrealistic to expect all seats to be free. The combination of the breeze from the bay and the backdrop of the Oudayas makes it for a very special setting, indeed.

Friday’s performance featured ten-time Grammy winner George Benson. It was an enjoyable concert, especially the instrumental numbers; yet, if you are familiar with Mr. Benson’s catalogue, you will recognize that the plethora of love ballads makes the concert-going experience not exactly ideal for a single man!

Regardless, I had a nice time, and thanks to my press pass, had a great view of the stage. Thanks again Younes and everyone at Hit Radio!

Here are some pictures and videos from the performances. Enjoy!

The opening words

MORE HOBA

2008-05-17T14:44:00.002Z

I cannot believe I forgot to write this in my last entry: after the Hoba Hoba Spirit concert last Saturday, everyone (band and entourage) went out to dinner. The Moroccan Music Awards were taking place that evening, so every few minutes, someone in the band would get a phone call informing them that Hoba had won such-and-such award. In the end, Hoba Hoba Spirit was awarded Best Single of the Year (“Hoba’s Back”), Best Album of the Year (Trabando) and Best Band of the Year. So a BIG congratulations to Hoba Hoba Spirit for sweeping the Moroccan Music Awards!

And if that weren’t enough for one day, the New York Times name-dropped the band in an article about the upcoming Gnaoua Festival in Essaouria. The Times referred to Hoba Hoba Spirit as, “a crowd-wowing multilingual 'Moroc ’n roll'” band. Way to go guys!

H2S IN CASA

2008-05-11T12:05:00.007Z

This past Saturday, I went to a Hoba Hoba Spirit concert at the Mohammed V Sports Complex in Casablanca. The show was a free concert, but only for girls, 25 years old and under.

Around one o’clock, I arrived with Adil at the arena to help set up his equipment. After a brief, but great sounding, sound-check, everyone in the band, myself and few other members of the Hoba entourage, went out for lunch. A few hours later, we returned to an arena packed with about 2,500 screaming girls.

Without a doubt, attending this concert was one of the most profound cultural experiences I have ever had, as, simply put, I have never seen so many hysterical girls in my life! The truth is that young girls in Moroccan society have a very limited social outlet. Many women are veiled; many are not – in no way is Morocco a “repressive” society; in fact, it is probably the most liberal Muslim country in the world. Nevertheless, it is clear that young women have much fewer opportunities to socialize than young men do.

The connection the band had with the (all female) audience was unprecedented: these girls were so absorbed by the music that many of them, literally, passed out. I lost count of the number of girls that were carried (while unconscious) to the medics in need of oxygen. It was almost as if I went to a time warp and was watching a Beatles concert from the early 1960s.

While the sound quality of the show left much to the imagination (arenas are never conducive for music performances), the dynamic between Hoba Hoba Spirit and the crowd made for a truly memorable experience. I am sure there are many factors as to why these young girls are able to identify with Hoba’s music that I, as an American male, will never truly understand. Yet, it was very apparent that, through the music, the band was able to form a special bond with the audience.

After the two-hour setlist was finished, I met up with the band backstage. An hour or so later, we started our exit out of the arena. Quite expectedly, there were throngs of girls waiting for autographs and pictures. It took some time to actually make it out of the venue; and when we finally did, we were greeted by more fans on the streets!

Here are some assorted pictures from the show and a video from the sound check. As it was a “ladies only” concert, I felt very awkward taking photographs, so I had a (female) Moroccan friend use my camera. So thank you, Myriam, for helping me out! Also, a huge thanks to every one in Hoba Hoba Spirit – Adil, Reda, Othmane, Anouar, Saad, and everyone else in their management crew.

Lastly, check out http://www.blogger.com/www.hobahobaspirit.comwhen you get a chance. Make sure to brush on your French first, though!

The medics were as necessary as the microphones

Not all the seats were filled, but the floor was packed.

Anouar and Reda

Adil sets up his kit.

SO MUCH TO LEARN

2008-05-09T19:48:00.003Z

The music of Morocco seems to be infinitely complex: due to the countless internal and external influences, there is a tremendous range in the different genres of music. This explains why the term “Moroccan music” is rather ambiguous, as “Moroccan music” can include influences from Arabian music, Andalusian music, West African music, Rai music (from Algeria) and, of course, the indigenous Berber music.

Even within Berber music, there are many variations: I was told that from tribe to tribe, there are different rhythms and melodies. Since my arrival to Morocco, I have met so many individuals – some musicians, some not – that know so much about the music of Morocco, despite the fact that there is so much to know. That is to say, it seems that throughout the population, there is a certain “common knowledge” about all of the different genres of Moroccan music. It is so impressive that so many people can thoroughly explain the histories of each school of music.

The tremendous level of diversity has led me to believe that, in order to get a true understanding of the music of Morocco, I must remain in the country for three months – the maximum allowed time without a permanent visa.

Therefore, I have extended my stay in Morocco. There are several festivals in June that I am eager to attend; chiefly, the Sacred Music Festival in Fes and Mawazine Rhythm Festival in Rabat. This means, unfortunately, that I have to eliminate Trinidad & Tobago from my itinerary. Nonetheless, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to stay in Morocco for three full months.

HOBA HOBA SPIRIT PRACTICE

2008-04-27T23:31:00.003Z

The other week, I was able to attend a practice of Adil's band, Hoba Hoba Spirit. One of the greatest frustrations of playing drums and being in a band is finding suitable practice space. In urban environments, no doubt, there are few apartments that are capable of hosting jam sessions, as the noise would disturb the neighbors.

Adil told me that a local, wealthy businessman offered to let the band use a building (that was old mattress showroom) free of charge. The support the band gets from the community is fantastic: it is so great to see that Hoba Hoba Spirit’s music is embraced by the locals. As a drummer, that sort of philanthropy makes me smile!

The band was preparing for a show that upcoming weekend in Paris. Although they hadn’t played together for about a month, they still sounded very good. They rehearsed their twenty-four song set list: it was really neat to witness this performance in such an intimate setting. The rhythms of Hoba’s songs are really outstanding: because of the West African influence on their music, many of the beats are in six, rather than four.

Throughout May and June, I will have several opportunities to see Hoba perform live. I am really excited to witness the energy of their live performances.

PIETRI > RETURN TO CASABLANCA

2008-04-17T13:20:00.013Z

A few Fridays back, I met Adil Hanine, the drummer of Hoba Hoba Spirit, at Hotel Pietri, a jazz bar in Rabat. Hoba Hoba Spirit is one of the most popular bands in Morocco right now – they received constant airplay and even tour internationally. Based out of Casablanca, Hoba’s music is a fusion of rock, reggae, and Gnaoua. The influence of Moroccan rhythms gives the band a truly awesome, not to mention unique, sound. Check

Adil made a guest appearance at Pietri, both on vocals and drums, during the performance of an Afro-Pop band, Super Jungle. After chatting for an hour or so, Adil said I was more than welcome to stay at his house in Casablanca, whenever I needed a place to crash. The following Sunday, I left Rabat for Casa.

The hospitality in Morocco is incredible: never have I traveled throughout a country where so many people are eager to provide the lonely traveler accommodation.
Adil met me at the Casa Port train station and took me back to his house. A couple of his friends were already over, and we hours we just talked about music, discussing everything from the underrated solo career of John Frusciante to the indispensable contribution George Harrison made to fusion music. It never ceases to amaze me to find people on other continents with such similar music tastes as my own: music truly is the universal language.

That night, Adil, his Bulgarian wife Tzvety, and I went to a local restaurant/bar that has live music. The place is a favorite spot amongst local musicians, as there are guitars, drums and microphones already set up. Needless to say, there are many jam sessions featuring Casablanca’s finest musicians.

After a delicious mixed grill dinner, I played drums with Adil (who was on bass) and another guitarist. We played songs we all knew, such as “No Woman No Cry,” “I Feel Good” and “Wonderful Tonight.” Being that I have not really practiced in since I left New York, it was somewhat intimidating to perform in front of thirty to forty people. Nonetheless, it was a blast to be able to play, albeit a brief twenty minutes.

Adil, the drummer of Hoba Hoba Spirit, and JP the bass player of Super Jungle outside Hotel Pietri in Rabat.

Saad, the bass player of Hoba, myself and Adil outside Pietri.

Jamming at a club in Casablanca.

RANDOM RABAT

2008-04-16T18:22:00.012Z

Below are a handful of random pictures from my stay in Rabat. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the capitol; and, thanks to my host, Amine, was able to meet many people throughout the city. I know I will return to Rabat in the next few weeks or so.

This picture is from a jazz quintet (the keys player is blocked) at Hotel Pietri. Morocco has a thriving jazz scene, thanks to the French influence.

The medina in Rabat is surprisingly orderly and (for the better) lacks the intensity of the market in Fes. Small hand drums are a common souvenir for the tourist; this shop keeper
For me, these drums are not particularly interesting: they are mass produced (as you can see) and are very poorly made. I do think it is neat that some drums are made of clay; but, I am sure they break very easily!

This darbuka (also called a goblet drum) is plated with (faux) mother of pearl. The pattern on the drum is very interesting. The head is a plastic and easily removable if broken. The actual shell of the drum is a composite of lightweight metals.

While visiting Amine’s extended family for a Friday night couscous dinner, I was shown these three drums. All three are made from clay and sheep hide. Amine’s uncle said he bought the biggest one for only 20 Dirham (about $3). The big drum is rested on your shoulder when played. The sound of the drum is fairly dull; although, because there are three pieces of string attached to the inside of the head, the sound has a “twanging” ring to it – almost like a very makeshift snare drum. Amine’s uncle told me he bought the drum for his wife.

GNAOUA IN SKHIRAT

2008-04-14T11:07:00.001Z

In almost every sense imaginable, Morocco is a mixture of cultures. For centuries, this country has absorbed the musical flavors of countless of external influences. In short, the many dimensions of Moroccan music can be traced back to Berber, Arab, Andalusian and West African origins. The parallels between Morocco and New York City are unavoidable: both places represent the pinnacle of multiculturalism.

Two weekends ago, Amine and I went to a party (more accurately, a small gathering) in Skhirat, a beach town just south of Rabat. The evening was hosted by a self-proclaimed music fanatic, Bashir. For the party, Bashir hired two Gnaoua musicians to perform; I had never seen a live Gnaoua performance before. It was my first real taste of the West African influence on Moroccan culture.

What exactly is Gnaoua music, you ask. Before I continue with my experiences at Bashir’s house, I will do my very best to define Gnaoua music.

Anthropologically speaking, the term “Gnaoua” (pronounced ga-na-wah) directly refers to the Sub-Saharan communities that either were enslaved and brought to, or naturally emigrated to, Morocco, most likely around the 16th Century. Originally, Gnaoua music was a West African pagan concept; that is to say, it was music performed at various rituals and healing ceremonies.

For the music performance, two instruments were used: the karkaba, a pair of small metal cymbals played with the hands, which is almost like a clave. The genbri, a three stringed bass guitar, was also played. The genbri is made from calf skin and the wood of a fig tree. The music of the genbir is supposed to evoke the spirit of the tree – a very pagan concept, indeed. The music is laden with improvised rhythms; many handclaps are scattered throughout each piece without a following a definitive time signature or meter.

The lyrics of the songs, sung in Arabic, pertain to the unlimited power and benevolence of God, and also tell stories of the Prophet Mohammed. When I asked if any of the lyrics were taken directly from the Qu’ran, I received an emphatic, “Absolutely not,” as my answer. “That would be sacrilege,” I was told.

Many centuries ago, Gnaoua was sung in West African languages and the contents of the lyrics pertained to themes of West African religions. Needless to say, Morocco has had a profound influence on the evolution of Gnaoua music.

In the bluntest sense, the purpose of Gnaoua music is what is called “hadra” – for the individual to become aware of the presence of the Lord. Within the tenets of Islam, God is everywhere at all times; yet, as mere mortals, we often fail to recognize omnipresent nature of the Divine. Through the vibrations of the music, we are able to focus on the tangibility of God. The music provides a medium for this consecrated connection: this, of course, is a very powerful feeling. Hence, many of the performers often fall into a deep trance.

The songs build on top of themselves; as in, as the music progresses, the beat moves faster and faster. The songs themselves can last anywhere from several minutes to several hours: most certainly, the repetition creates a hypnotic essence to it.

Most certainly, the ultimate goal of performing Gnaoua music is to create a mystical union between the musician and God. Not surprisingly, many of Gnaoua musicians are devout Sufis – Sufism is the mystical sect of Islam. The staple of Sufism affirms that every individual is capable of having a personal relationship with God.

To become a true gnaoua musician, there is a rigorous training process: the master and disciple maintain a very close relationship. According to Bashir, among gnaoua musicians, there is a “very codified way of being.”

I was lucky enough to witness a performance by an authentic maalem, master of Gnaoua. Tonight’s performance featured Adbel Kader, the maalem, and Said, the disciple, called a “cuyo.” Because of the vast amount of tourism throughout Morocco, there are many individuals that claim to be a maalem – yet, in all truth, the number of maalem is very few, as the commercialization of Gnaoua music has undermined its spiritual nature. Bashir asserted that among Gnaoua musicians there is an inherent hesitation to advertise their religious tradition.

The candle lit room at Bashir’s house provided an intimate setting to showcase the performers. Acrobatic dances accompany the music: a tremendous amount of energy is required to perform Gnaoua. That being said, for tonight’s performance, there was minimal dancing, as the environment was not exactly conducive for it.

Although Gnaoua is a very serious music, this evening’s performance was rather light-hearted. Towards the end of the evening, an up-and-coming twenty-year-old Moroccan blues guitarist performed with the two Gnaoua musicians. Interestingly enough, musicologists have traced American Blues music back to Gnaoua. Of the past quarter century, several notable Western musicians, including Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and Bill Laswell, have experimented with Gnaoua, to create a new fusion music.

Gnaoua music reflects its West African roots; yet, is still an Islamic enterprise.
On the surface, the marriage of a West African tradition and Islam may seem to be counterintuitive, as some West African religious were polytheistic; but nonetheless, these two concepts come together fluidly. That is to say, the common goal of developing a sense of piety and raising awareness of the Divine is reached. The music itself serves as a religious invocation: in the purest sense, Gnaoua strives to create awareness for the Almighty, through the trance of the music.

In all truth, I know very little about Gnaoua music– it is a very complicated art indeed. Every June in Essaouria, in south Morocco, the Gnaoua World Music Festival is held: I look forward to attending the festival to learn more about this mystical music.

Here are some pictures; more videos to come!

A blurry but happy Bashir in the background

The musicians; I chose not to use flash, so they would not be disturbed...

Earlier in the day, cruising the beach on ATVs with Amine and Bashir

SOON

2008-04-12T14:07:00.003Z

Apologies for a lack of updates as of late. I have been bouncing between Rabat and Casablanca. Much research and writing is in the works and will be delivered as soon as possible...

HIT RADIO

2008-04-03T19:57:00.003Z

First and foremost, my apologies for a lack of updates since my arrival to Morocco: my internet access has been inconsistent as of late. Furthermore, due to slow connection speeds, I have been unable to upload any videos. Moving on…

Last week, in Rabat, I met Younes Boumehdi, one of the directors at Hit Radio, the first hip-hop and R&B radio station in Morocco. Founded in July 2006, Hit Radio strives to expose up-and-coming Moroccan artists.

Like hip-hop in other parts of the world, the music reflects the urban struggles of the younger generations. Some artists, like Hakim from Rabat and Fnaire from Marrakesh, incorporate traditional elements of Moroccan music into the beats of their contemporary music. The marriage of rap and “classical” Moroccan music is an intriguing enterprise. That being said, throughout American hip hop, it is very common for the beat (music, that is) to sample Western classical music – just think of all of the string sections employed in a beat by Dr. Dre or RZA.

(An interesting side note, Fnaire, a trio of rappers, has recorded with several members of the Wu-Tang Clan. Here is a link if you would like to stream some of their music).

Although Hit Radio only broadcasts contemporary music, Younes does know many traditional musicians, most of whom are based in Marrakesh. Younes asserted that many young Moroccans were “fed up” with the traditional music scene, and thus, had a greater interest in genres of music like hip-hop. The Moroccan government had been hesitant to approve a hip-hop radio station – deeming it to be a potentially bad influence on the youth of Morocco. Nonetheless, since Hit Radio was inaugurated, it has flourished and fostered the growth of the Moroccan music scene.

Aside from establishing several contacts for me, Younes generously offered to provide a pass for the “Mawazine, Rhythms of the World Festival,” which is from May 16^th to 24^th in Rabat. I am really looking forward to attending that festival; I will write more about it as it approaches.

Two days ago, I went back to Hit Radio and met a man named Dominique, who is French. Dominique works to promote and develop contemporary Moroccan music; and also, helps form the weekly play lists for Hit Radio. Dominique also provided me with several potential contacts for my research.

So a big thanks to everyone at Hit Radio! I forgot to take pictures at the station; but here is one of me wearing traditional Moroccan clothing, the jellaba. I am attending a wedding this weekend and need to have a Moroccan "tux"!

WELCOME TO MAROC

2008-03-31T14:33:00.005Z

Es salaam alaykum! I arrived in Casablanca just over a week ago. After spending a few days in Casa – including a jazz-filled evening at the best gin joint in North Africa, Rick’s Café – I took the train to Rabat, the capitol of Morocco. Already in the short amount of time that I have been in here, much has come to fruition in regards to my research. Over the forthcoming days, enshallah, I will share the experiences I have had. So, in short, stayed tuned, as there is more to come...pending internet access that is!

Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca - the third largest mosque in the world!

...right on the Atlantic Ocean...

Rick's Cafe

The art of the kitten?

KODO & BLØF: FUSION IN AMSTERDAM, PART THREE

2008-03-25T14:33:00.003Z

I shot a TON of short videos during the three performances. Below are fifteen different ones; although, there is probably only ten minutes of video in total posted, so it is not too much to watch.To be completely honest, I am unsure whether YouTube will allow this videos to remain online, so I would recommend watching them as soon as possible. This goes without saying, but the concert experience is rather watered down when transferred to film. So, just think of this as a taste of the Kodo-Bløf fusion…

KODO & BLØF: FUSION IN AMSTERDAM, PART TWO

2008-03-25T14:29:00.003Z

On the early evening of March 14th, I arrived at the Heineken Music Hall in South Amsterdam. I picked up my tickets for the performances on the 14th and 16th; I had been unable to buy a ticket for the 15th, as the show had sold out very quickly (all three shows were sold out eventually). Coincidently, Jun Aukimoto, one Kodo’s tour managers, was at the ticket will call window when I arrived; Mr. Aukimoto and I had been in correspondence over the past month, and he had generously arranged to have a ticket for me for the show on the 15th. It turned out that Mr. Aukimoto gave me a VIP pass that included access to the after party on Sunday night (I will get to that later). So, a big, BIG thanks to Jun Aukimoto and Gen Matsui of Kodo; I cannot express how much I appreciated their help to ensure that I was able to attend all three shows!

A little background information about Bløf: they are one of the most successful Dutch bands. In a way, I would describe them as the Dutch version of U2. The band itself is comprised of Paskal Jakobsen (vocals/guitar), Peter Slager (bass/vocals), Bas Kennis (piano/vocals) and Norman Bonink (drums/vocals).

The Heineken Music Hall (HMH), which basically looks a large box with metal panels and concrete floors, has a capacity of about five thousand people. Directly in front of the stage is a floor with fold-up seats; there are two levels of balconies in the rear; and VIP balconies on the left and right sides of the concert hall. With the obvious exception of the VIP balconies, there are no assigned seats throughout the venue. Regardless of where you choose to sit, the acoustics are superb.

On the first night, I sat on the floor, seven rows from the right side of the stage. It was absolutely incredible to be so close to the stage. For the three Kodo concerts I attended in Japan in December, I was all the up in the balcony at each venue (in Hiroshima, Okayama, and Osaka). It is true that the acoustics (as in, the projection of the sound from the drums) is better if you are further away from the stage; yet, it was most excellent to be able to see all of the facial expressions and body movements of the musicians.

On the second night at the HMH, I opted to sit in the upper rear balcony. Although I was rather far from the stage, I enjoyed the distanced vantage point, as it allowed me to have a full, unobstructed view of the stage. On Sunday, the final night, I took advantage of my VIP pass, and sat on the VIP balcony on the right side of the stage. (Yes, the seats were much more comfortable there).

It was great to watch each performance from three distinct perspectives; this certainly made each night feel very unique. Nonetheless, I will readily admit that, when watching Kodo perform, the closer to the stage you are, the more intense (and thus, more memorable) the experience is. Being so close to the stage, allows you to feel the vibrations of the sound waves resonating from the taiko drums.

The set lists were relatively identical throughout the three nights. In short, there were four Bløf “solo” songs, five Kodo “solo” songs, and eleven songs performed by both groups. Because almost every song had a different arrangement of instruments/combination of musicians, there were many stage adjustments. It was rather impressive to see how fluidly the transitions were; there was almost no time wasted in between songs to set up the stage. Interestingly enough, only Kodo members moved the taiko drums; the regular stage crew never touched any of Kodo’s drums.

(The following is applicable for all three nights of performances).

The set list was flawless: it was a perfect showcase for the members of Kodo and Bløf to demonstrate their talents individually and in tandem. (It should be noted that the way the musical arrangements worked was that Kodo played with Bløf; as in, the Japanese drummers learned Bløf’s songs. Bløf did not “learn” or “add on” to Kodo songs, with one notable exception that I will discuss later).

What was most effective about the set list was that there was a tremendous amount of variation. To get an idea of how the concert worked, here is a (loose) set list:
1. Both groups begin on stage together; a very cool taiko beat with the pop rock beat
2. Bløf song
3. Kodo jam; about fifteen minutes
4. Bløf song with two female Kodo members, one on a Japanese slide guitar and the other providing additional vocals
5. Bløf song; apparently a big hit, as the crowd knew every word
6. Bløf song with one Kodo member on the Japanese guitar again
7. Kodo jam; about ten minutes (I recognized this one from the December concerts)
8. Kodo & Bløf melodic interlude, with two Kodo members playing the flute
9. Bløf song
10. Bløf song; duet with female Kodo member; Shogo (of Kodo) on the violin
11. Kodo song; famous number played on the giant o-daiko drum
12. Bløf song
13. Kodo jam with Bløf’s drummer playing various taiko drums. West meets East, indeed!
14. Kodo and Bløf end the first set together; crowd chants “We want more!”
15. First encore: both groups together for slow song
16. Kodo jam
17. Kodo and Bløf together
18. Second encore: Kodo song performed by female vocalist and string player
19. Kodo drummers parade through the audience; jam with Bløf’s drummer (with him on the drum kit)
20. Kodo and Bløf come together for the big finale

Without a doubt, the zenith of the concert was when Norman, Bløf’s drummer, played several different taiko drums during an extended Kodo solo. Norman was extremely fluid on the taiko drums; it was clear that he had practiced much before the performance. It was just so neat to see him so engrossed while playing; not to mention how cool it was to see the Kodo members fully embrace him. This was the most memorable aspect of the show, hands down.

Another highlight was during the second encore, when Kodo played a song with Bløf’s drummer on the drum kit. The thunderous taiko beat incorporated with the rhythm of a full drum kit was phenomenal: percussive fusion at its finest.

During the fusion songs, it seemed that that the less complicated the Bløf drumbeats were, the more creative Kodo could be. In a certain sense, secondary drumming is for rhythm what harmony is for melody: thus, Kodo provided a “rhythmic” harmony for the Bløf songs.

I had seen several of the same Kodo songs performed back in December; yet, these versions were definitely different, specifically in the length of the song and number of drummers performing. The music of Kodo tends to challenge the notion of sound and perception: the drummers both will play their instruments as loudly and as softly as possible. Kodo performed classics, such as “Zoku, ” “Kyosui,” and “Floor” – okay, I admit that you probably haven’t heard of any of those songs, but they are all wonderful!

Patience is needed to listen to taiko in order to appreciate the flow of the movements of each composition. Many pieces are very long, and thus require much attention to fully enjoy the trajectory of the song. One of the Kodo jams last almost fifteen minutes: of course I could listen to straight percussion for hours, but I would have assumed that many people do not differentiate a cacophonous din from a symphonious rhythm. Nonetheless, it was clear that even during the extended Kodo solos, the audience was continually captivated.

It felt as if every one in the venue – musician and ticket holder alike – were all completely absorbed by the music. Throughout the entire evening, the audience was very responsive – in a positive manner – to both the fusion songs and Kodo solo pieces. It should be noted that Bløf has attracts an older fan base. Marinating in Eastern and Western rhythms for two-and-a-half hours can be an invigorating, yet taxing, experience. By the end of each night, I was exhausted!

There was a definite element of humor to the concerts; a sense of “light-heartedness” prevailed throughout the performances. For example, after the first extensive Kodo drum solo, the Bløf lead singer/guitarist, Paskal Jakobsen, made a joke in Dutch that I did not fully understand – although I did recognize that he was poking fun at the strenuous effort of the Kodo drummers, as he used the word, “workout.” It is absolutely true that taiko drumming requires an exceptional amount of endurance, as it is a very physical activity.

Kudos to Bløf for creating more international exposure for Kodo: I do not doubt that Kodo’s popularity in the Netherlands will skyrocket after these concerts. Everything about this concert series was executed so perfectly. The production of the shows was stellar: everything from the background videos to the lighting to the mixing of the audio tracks was excellent. Even during Bløf’s solo rock songs it was just cool to see giant taiko drums in the background. By the final night, there were definitely a bunch of the Bløf songs that were stuck in my head; that band has some very catchy hooks!

It was so wonderful to be able to see all three performances because during each song, so much music was been played, as there were frequently around eight to ten musicians on stage. Furthermore, no two songs sounded the same. I was able to focus on different parts and layers of each song throughout the three nights.

The after party on Sunday night was a really nice conclusion to a great weekend. (It was also nice to get free food, as I had skipped supper that evening!). Because there was a notable absence of certain Kodo members at the party, I went to see if I could find Shogo, the drummer I met on Sado Island back in November. Eventually, I found him, loading up equipment onto a truck. It was interesting that some Kodo members were assembling and disassembling their own gear. Shogo and I chatted for a bit; he was surprised to see me, considering we first met on the other side of the globe.

Indeed, these concerts are not reflective of drums and percussion in a “religious” context; yet, there was a definite spiritual essence to the whole production. The beauty of fusion music begins with the marriage of two different genres of music; yet, what truly makes fusion music special is how it can bridge different cultures together. By that token, fusion music is more than just anything genre of music. Surely, some sort of profound – perhaps even “spiritual,” if you will – connection was formed between the members of Kodo and Bløf. The exercise of fusion truly can be a wonderful construct.

KODO & BLØF: FUSION IN AMSTERDAM

2008-03-19T11:30:00.017Z

Preface: this post will be in three parts.

I am so grateful to have autonomy of my research: the Bristol Fellowship coordinator at Hamilton College, Ginny Dosch, has given me a tremendous degree of flexibility in regards to my itinerary. With my original fellowship proposal, I had no idea that I would want to venture to Amsterdam for a series of concerts. Fortunately, I was able to fit this side trip into my schedule.

From March 14th-16th, Kodo, the taiko drum group I worked with while in Japan, played three concerts in Amsterdam with a Dutch pop rock group, called Bløf. (I think Jerry Seinfeld said it best, “What is that O with the line through it? What letter is that? I don’t remember that letter in school.”)

The shows were not just merely Kodo as the opening act for Bløf; instead, the two groups collaborated and performed many songs together, fusing traditional Japanese drumming with modern Dutch rock music. Needless to say, this fusion created a tremendous visual and auditory experience.
To take a step back: ever since I first ventured to India in the fall of 2005, I have been amazed by the concept of fusion music. I was initially turned on to fusion music by the godfather of the genre itself, George Harrison. Harrison’s records, both with the Beatles and throughout this solo career, reflected a sincere interest in Indian music.

Fusion music is very difficult to create: above all, among the musicians, there must been a genuine interest and appreciation between the two schools of music. For example, George Harrison was so successful in making fusion music, as he studied the sitar as any other rising Indian student would; as in, he did not exploit his “rock star” status…

In purest sense, the purpose of drums is to communicate. With fusion music, cross-cultural communication is a given, as two different forms of music are mixed and mashed together. In the context of the Kodo- Bløf performances, it was apparent that a very special personal connection among the Japanese and Dutch musicians was forged through the music.

It was very much so evident that the members of Bløf had a sincere enthusiasm for Japanese taiko music. Not only did the music sound fantastic, but also it was clear that all the musicians were having a blast, as all the musicians were nothing but smiles. By the final night, during the big drum solo between Kodo and Bløf drummer (Norman Bonink), Norman was even wearing a traditional Japanese headband!

Within the parameters of research “spirituality in drumming and drum crafting,” it might be questionable as to what was the “spiritual” element to the Kodo- Bløf performances.

Spirituality has the connotation of the individual’s connection to the Divine; yet, in a certain sense, can “spirituality” also implicate a more personal connection between two humans? To clarify, there is something wholly “spiritual” about two people forming such a strong, personal connection, especially when that bond breaks down cultural barriers. Surely, “spirituality” is a rather ambiguous term and concept; but, after witnessing the Kodo- Bløf performances, I do affirm that a “spiritual” union can be formed between two people, vis-à-vis music.

The second part of this post will describe the concert itself…

Shogo loads equipment after the show

PIPE DRUM

2008-03-18T16:12:00.002Z

During my stay in Sevilla, I discovered a small drum shop, called Naranjo Music. The shop mostly sells Western-style drum kits and accessories; but there was a wide selection of African hand drums, as well.

Historically, all of Andalucia, formerly known as “Al-Andalus,” has had a profound connection to Northern Africa and the Islamic world, in general. Indeed, this is not the proper forum to discuss the broader cultural influences that Muslim dynasties had on Christian Spain from the Eighth Century to 1492; nonetheless, this history has, invariably, created ties between the Andalucian and North African music.

Although there was a good selection of African drums, the one drum that caught my eye was the most unconventional: it was a pair of tom-tom drums made from PVC water pipes. Like a timbale set (think Tito Puente), a pair of cowbells and six-inch splash cymbal are mounted above the two drums.
The pipe drum set certainly would be classified as a “found instrument,” as the materials used to create the drum were never intended to be used for that purpose. To give the drum an even more makeshift feel to it, the pipes were colored in with marker, not paint. Somewhat surprisingly, the sound of the drums is pretty solid.

While I have seen pipes transformed into drum shells before, there was something about this particular set that just seemed like such an “honest” effort by the craftsman. Rarely do innovation and practicality form such a straightforward marriage.

While this drum does not boast any aesthetical value, the ingenuity of the materials used to create the instrument is highly commendable. Surely, the drum does not define the drummer: the music coming out of the drum is all that matters.

Drums can be crafted for thousands and thousands of dollars, but at the same time, they can be crafted from household materials for next to nothing. It is rather incredible to analyze the spectrum of drum crafting: when I think how complex (and costly) the process of drum crafting at Asano Taiko in Japan was to the simple (and cheap) process of crafting the pipe drum, it is really neat to see such variation. But, it seems that sometimes simplicity just works best when crafting a drum.

DRUMMERS FROM SIERRA LEONE (IN SEVILLA)

2008-03-11T13:20:00.005Z

After my departure from India, I arrived in Sevilla, Spain, to prepare itinerary for Morocco and to, well, just take it easy for a few days. Sevilla is in Andalucia, the most southern part of the country. Because of its proximity to Africa, there are many immigrants from Morocco and West Africa in Sevilla; which creates a very diverse music scene.

One evening, I stumbled upon a small music club, Reggae Vibes, and watched a percussion performance by a group from Sierra Leone. The group, called African Shrine, mostly played djembes – large wooden and calf-skin hand drums. The djembe jam lasted about an hour, and there was also a fire show. All in all, it was very entertaining and a rather unexpected evening!

Below are a bunch of pictures and videos from the performance. The lighting is pretty poor in the videos, but the sound came out well…Enjoy!

TABLA LESSONS IN CHENNAI

2008-03-02T12:46:00.003Z

Hello all. I have received several messages in regards to my tabla instructor. If you are ever in Chennai and want to learn to play the tabla, definitely contact Chandran. He is a very friendly, patient, and talented teacher. His address is No. 54/21, DeMonte Street, Santhome, Mylapore, Chennai, 600 004, which is right near Marina Beach. The best way to contact Chandran would be via telephone: 98401 06214 or 99414 46214. Please give him my regards!

NEW LOOK & A HEADS UP...

2008-02-28T14:38:00.003Z

So after I officially have passed my six-month "anniversary" of the Bristol Fellowship, I have decided to go for a new look for the website. Honestly, as you probably have already gathered, I know very little about web design - I just thought this template was a nice change. Of course, feedback and recommendations are always welcome.

On that note, I have noticed that this site has been receiving many "spam" comments. I try to delete these comments as soon as possible, but definitely do not click the links that are provided. Just thought I'd give you that heads up...

INDIA, IN SUM

2008-02-25T13:27:00.006Z

A flurry of thoughts of my experience in India come to mind: in no way is this post a denouement, but rather it is an informal reaction to my time in India…

One of the most underrated aspects of traveling throughout India is that I have found so many awesome records that I would never find back in the States. Indeed, we live in an era of globalization; yet, sometimes I am overwhelmed with how much music I encounter here that I would never be exposed to back in New York City. On those terms, I have discovered a ton of fantastic Indian percussionists, including Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer and Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani – all of whom I was unaware of prior to my arrival in South India.

Furthermore, I have attended so many concerts of local artists – all professional musicians, yet not internationally promoted. There is something very special about seeing a performance and knowing that it is an isolated opportunity: I cannot go to Virgin Records in Union Square and buy the records of these drummers.

A carving on the door of a temple in Chennai.

Perhaps one of the more frustrating aspects of this fellowship is knowing that I will never be able to convey so many of my experiences to this website. I have seen some many things that are pertinent to my research, but I just haven’t been able to write about. For example, while in Goa, I saw several concerts of Western Shivaite converts – Westerners that converted to Hinduism, and worship Shiva by playing music (amongst other things…). Yet, I have been unable to figure out where this group fits into my research. Either way, there has not been a shortage of music-related experiences while in India. It seems that I constantly was surrounded by music: there is always some minor festival or parade precession just around the corner. Simply put, Indian culture is saturated with music, from the pop Bollywood hits to traditional religious songs to regional folk ballads.

I feel very grateful that I have been able to meet so many welcoming musicians here in India; I cannot imagine how my experience in India would have been if I had never met Chandran, my tabla teacher.

I have become very appreciative of the fact that I am conducting this research in the age of the internet: I could not imagine having to plan this fellowship without the aid of computers and instant communication. Furthermore, I think it is really neat that my research is produced in real time: because of this website, I am able to update all of you with my discoveries almost instantaneously – pending I have internet access, that is.

I am very curious to see how the Moroccan tabla compares to the Indian tabla: I would imagine that the crafting is almost identical, but I have learned that hypotheses prior to field research are a complete shot in the dark.

Swami Vivekanada Museum

Swami Vivekananda, the man who introduced Hinduism to the West

Marina Beach in Chennai

Church in Chennai

ASSORTED GOODNESS FROM GOA

2008-02-23T15:12:00.004Z

More glimpses into my life...

Portuguese Catholic church in Anjuna

Mini drum shop with djembes and dholaks

Better than being a burger.

THE ART OF THE TABLA

2008-02-23T15:04:00.001Z

A few months ago, I met a jazz drummer from Sydney, Australia named Jamie Cameron. I have heard some of Jamie’s records, and he truly is a fantastic drummer. During our conversation, Jamie told me that he had just come back from studying the janggoo drum in Korea. (The janggoo is actually a drum widely used in Japanese music; many historians believe that the Koreans introduced music to the Japanese, thus explaining why both cultures share an instrument).

Jamie told me how much he respected the Korean janggoo drum, because it has such a rich history. Then he said something that really struck me: he affirmed, “I think that we [Western drummers] have no idea how to play the drums.” Essentially, his theory is that the Korean janggoo drum has been played for centuries, and thus has been perfected. The Western drum kit, on the other hand, is a very new instrument, as it is not even one hundred years old. The first drum kits – a snare, tom toms, pedal-driven bass drum, high-hat and ride cymbal – came onto the music scene in the late 1920s/early 1930s.

When Jamie told me his theory – something that I think actually is not a theory, because I have no doubt it is the truth –, I told him that the Indian tabla upholds his hypothesis. The tabla is another drum that has been played for ages; there is a very specific way to learn the tabla, the teachings have been perfected. Most drummers will agree that the musicianship it takes to play a tabla or Korean janggoo drum is simply at another level to that of a Western drum kit. While the physical coordination of Western drums may be more challenging than any other percussion instrument, as Western drums require the command of hands and feet, the Indian tabla or Korean janggoo have a more much specific school of training.

In no way am I asserting that Indian percussionists are “better” than Western drummers; nothing in music should ever be compared, as music is not a competition. Nonetheless, due to the rich history of Indian drumming, it is fair to say that instruments like the tabla are far more evolved than the Western drum kit.

The tabla can produce a mellifluous range of sound because everything from the technique of the tuning to the mastery of method of playing has been tried and tested over centuries and centuries. As with any aspect of life, with further years of study, more is known and that knowledge can be applied to the practice.

Don’t get me wrong, when Jamie first told me his theory, I could not help but highlight the incredible skills of jazz drummers like Buddy Rich, Elvin Jones and David King. But what Jamie was saying, was that those drummers will just be the beginning – that in a few centuries, Western drummers will be doing unimaginable things on the drum kit.

CARNIVAL IN GOA

2008-02-22T18:18:00.007Z

I had no idea that Carnival was celebrated in India. Although it was the Portuguese Catholics that introduced the holiday to India, today, Carnival is celebrated by Christians, Hindus and Muslims all throughout the state of Goa – and apparently, in Kerala, as well. To the best of my knowledge, India is the only country in Asia that celebrates Carnival.

I was able to see two cavalcades; one in the small beach town of Anjuna, and another in the larger town of Mapusa. The Anjuna celebration was so small that it seemed as if there were more spectators than participants. In Mapusa, on the other hand, the streets were packed with people, both watching and partaking in the festivities.

Like Carnival celebrations everywhere, it really was just a whacky, but wildly fun, gathering. The processions include many floats with dancers, musicians, and individuals dressed in elaborate costumes.

I was a little disappointed that there was not any live, acoustic drumming. To my surprise, there were actually several drummers playing electronic kits, while parading on the back of the floats. It almost seemed like it would be more complicated to use an electronic drum kit than an acoustic one in a parade. For whatever reason, the drummers opted for electronic kits: maybe this was a sign of modernity eclipsing certain drumming traditions. Regardless of that, the music still was an intricate and essential part of the celebration.

Of course, there was a certain “Indian” dynamic to the festival: maybe it was because the procession in Anjuna had a sign that read, “VIVE CARNIV_L 2008,” or because a float in Mapusa declared, “HAPPY CARNAVAL.” Either way, it was a pleasant surprise to see Carnival, the Indian way…

Pictures and videos below...

Mapusa

Anjuna

ASSORTED PHOTOGRAPHS FROM PONDICHERRY

2008-02-21T15:18:00.005Z

Pondicherry is the former French colony in India.

Gandhi statue.

Drum salesmen.

Busy street.

Research related.

ASHOK & WESTERN DRUMMING IN CHENNAI

2008-02-21T14:08:00.005Z

Some of my contacts have come about in the most random fashion: while taking a taxi ride from Chennai to Pondicherry, as I was explaining why I was in India, my driver told me that one of his closest friends was a drummer. After spending a few days in Pondi, I returned on to Chennai, and met with a thirty-something year-old drummer named, Ashok.

Fortunately, Ashok lives in Royapettah, the same neighborhood I have been living in; so it was not too difficult finding his house. Initially, I was under the impression that Ashok was trained in Indian hand drums, like the tabla or dholak; but, it turned out that he actually studies Western drum kit. I had yet to meet an Indian musician that exclusively played Western style drums.

Ashok has been playing drums for many years; but asserts that it only has been “six” full years, as that is how long he has studied under his teacher, Gopal Sivamani, one of the most respected Indian drummers. Sivamani is a very accomplished recording artist, and, like many famous Indian musicians, is from Chennai. It was unclear how often Ashok plays with Sivamani; nonetheless, the way Ashok spoke of Sivamani, it was clear that Ashok greatly respected and admired his teacher.

The guru–shishya (teacher–student) relationship is an essential aspect of Indian culture. With any sort of musical apprenticeship, there is an inherent spiritual training, as well: like all great student-teacher relationships, much more is learned than the said subject. Perhaps this why Ashok was so curious as to whom my teacher was; because in India, a drum teacher is more than a drum teacher. For the record, my first drum teacher was John Cutrone; and while at Hamilton College, it was Jim Johns.

All of that aside, for a couple of hours Ashok and I jammed on his drum kit. Ashok actually had a really large kit: it was a standard five piece (snare, bass, two rack toms and a floor tom), plus a trio of marching toms above the snare, and two timbales above the floor tom. Considering the size of his apartment, his kit was absolutely massive.

Not surprisingly, as Ashok lives in a government housing complex, he needs to muffle the drums, so that the neighbors do not complain. To minimize the sound, Ashok wraps all of the drums and cymbals with dishtowels and other clothes. It is a rather clever system; although, it makes playing the drums much, much more difficult, as your playing speed is reduced dramatically, from the resistance of the cloth.

While it was extremely refreshing to get behind a drum kit, after several months without proper practice, my chops were rather rusty. Ashok sounded very good; his stick control was outstanding. In Western drumming, the two most common strokes are the single stroke (the drum makes one sound with one stroke/hit) and double stroke (two sounds with one stroke). Ashok has been practicing triple, quadruple, quintuple and sextuple strokes; all which sound really awesome.

One of the most frustrating aspects of this fellowship is that I am always surrounded by drums and percussion; yet, I have very few opportunities to play a drum kit. Further, as expected, my research predominantly focuses on hand percussion; which is why I seldom am exposed to full drum kits. My constant desire to air drum often leaves me looking rather hyperactive, as I always am in motion…

It has worked out that in each country where I have conducted research, I have had at least one opportunity to play a drum kit: in Fiji, I gave drum lessons at a church on Kadavu; in Japan, I jammed with students on roof of the University of Kyoto of Art & Design; and in India, I was able to play on a muffled kit with Ashok.

As much as I am enjoying my experiences right now, I cannot wait to get home, and play for hours while applying my new knowledge of international percussion to my drum kit.

ANOTHER HINDU WEDDING

2008-02-20T17:44:00.003Z

Chandran, my tabla instructor, earns a bulk of his livelihood by performing “light” music. Although he is classically trained, Chandran thoroughly enjoys playing light music – which, essentially, is a nonreligious, pop music. Light music is most often performed at weddings and other social functions; the music itself consists mostly of covers of popular Bollywood (film) songs.

So, I accompanied Chandran to a Hindu wedding – my second in the past six months. Like my experience in Fiji, I was the only Western at the event. That being said, like so many other situations, I definitely felt welcomed. Actually, I attended the wedding celebration, not the service itself; but, the party is always the most important part, right?

It was really neat watching Chandran set up his tabla set and other percussion instruments. Because the light music is very melodic, as it is really just pop music, Chandran used five different tabla (right-handed) drums, so that he had a wide range of pitches to play with. He even tuned a dholak accordingly (to A on the music scale), and basically used it as a sixth tabla. In a purely religious setting, like that of a performance at a temple, a tabla player would most definitely not have so many tabla (right-handed) drums to work with, as the melody is not essential to Carnatic or Hindustani music; or rather, the melody is not the responsibility of the tabla player.

Considering its traditional roots, the versatility of the instrument is quite impressive: surely, the tabla is classical instrument – it must be remembered that Carnatic and Hindustani music are the equivalent of Western classical music, like that of Schubert or Mozart. Nonetheless, the tabla does not sound out of place in a contemporary context. Indeed, there is a certain paradox of the tabla, as it is able to juxtapose itself, by functioning in both traditional and contemporary music.

Aside from the tabla, Chandran also used a variety of percussion instruments, including some small bongos, a set of tom toms, and shakers. Interestingly enough, the shakers where just old aerosol cans filled with rice; very resourceful indeed. Also, the band had another drummer, named Madhavan, who played an electronic drum pad. Madhavan said that normally he plays an acoustic kit for his performances, but was unable to get one for this show.

Truth be told, the sound quality was pretty poor, so that was a little disappointing. Further, light music is almost a glorified karaoke, as just about anyone is welcome to grab the mic and sing his or her favorite Bollywood hit. Regardless, it was very entertaining to see my first light music performance. I thought it was interesting that although it was a light music performance, there still was a framed picture of Saravasti, the Hindu Goddess of Music on the stage.

I must admit, the groom did fairly well with his dowry: there was a motorcycle, television, refrigerator, washing machine, and much more. It is funny because I think I now have been to more Hindu weddings than “American” weddings…

PONGAL PROCESSIONS & EXPLOSIONS

2008-02-19T16:51:00.003Z

Like all Indian festivals, Pongal is a sensory overload: the sounds, smells and sights engulf your entire being. What is so special about observing these festivals is the unexpected: indeed, I often do not know what to anticipate, especially in regards to the music. To be honest, I am not really sure how to share all of my Pongal experiences; so, here are just a couple short stories and observations from the festival. My apologies if there is a serious lack of transitions paragraph to paragraph…

During one of the afternoons of Pongal, I was walking with a Dutch fellow around Marina Beach. As I was telling him the single most valuable lesson I have learned from traveling throughout India – never, ever be surprised by anything – a procession with fireworks and a band came from out of nowhere. And yes, the explosions of the fireworks were too close for comfort…

Throughout Pongal, there are buses that go from the city to the surrounding villages. Many people actually leave Chennai to visit their families outside of the city. Not surprisingly, the public buses are packed with people; and many of these people are the festival musicians. So, quite frequently, a bus with drive by and there will be musicians onboard that are practicing…

On each night of Pongal, I watched the festivities in my neighborhood, Royapettah, which is in central Chennai. On all three nights, there was music; and while on all three nights, the drumming was the same, the accompanying instruments were different. The drums were rather interesting, as one side was played with fingers and the other a stick. The drums themselves have a very sharp, distinct sound, as the heads are made froma very thick oxen skin.

I was a little surprised to see a Western saxophone played during one of the religious processions; yet, as I already have written, I have learned to never, ever be surprised by anything in India. Even if traditionally a saxophone has no place in a Hindu temple, India, more so than anywhere else in the world, has a profound ability to adapt and absorb aspects of contemporary culture. On the most basic level, music is music; what does it matter what instrument is used in a religious ritual or ceremony?

I readily admit that the former sentence somewhat undermines the foundations of my research; yet, there is a certain truth that music does change with the time. Of course, it seems that the percussion instruments used in the festival still are “traditional” Indian instruments…

As you will witness in the videos, this procession, filmed in Royapettah, simply goes from the temple to the main road; only about three blocks or so. Throughout the city, I would imagine that there are dozens of similar displays: remember, Indians always seize the opportunity to partake in a festival!

While I would have liked to have seen the evening celebrations in other neighborhoods, it was really neat to see the same one three nights in a row. Often, for many obvious reasons, I feel very much so an outsider to these religious rituals and musical performances; yet, as I had been living in Royapettah for almost a month, to a minimal but existent degree, I did feel a part of the community. I knew several of the children and adults that were organizing and participating in the event.

On the last night, I actually was invited to perform the puja – wafting the smoke above my head three times and eating the prashad. It was a refreshing change to no longer feel like I was just an academic looking in, but instead a participant in the Pongal festivities.

Enjoy the videos; while many are similar, they do have their differences. Furthermore, Pongal is a visual and audio experience, so my descriptions admittedly provide little insight…

PONGAL

2008-02-17T15:08:00.008Z

I have a theory: on any given day, somewhere in India, there is a festival. Whether it is to venerate a god, to commemorate a local hero, or simply to celebrate life, India is teeming with festivities.

Throughout South India in mid-January, Pongal, a four-day festival, is celebrated. (Pongal actually is celebrated throughout India, but my writing is only in reference to the Pongal of Tamil Nadu). Originating as an annual harvest festival, Pongal has become much more than a simple celebration of farmers’ crops. Like many Indian festivals, Pongal is a medley of music, dance, food, and parade after parade. Without a doubt, Pongal is a religious festival with specific rituals and actions that uphold the values and traditions of Hinduism.

In actuality, each of the four days of Pongal is dedicated to a different god within the Hindu pantheon. Bhogi Pongal, the first day, pays tribute to Indra, the rain god. It should be noted that labeling any Hindu god with one characteristic, like “rain god”, is rather misleading, as whatever each Hindu deity represents is dependent on what sect of Hinduism is observed. For example, Indra also can be recognized as the “war god” or “king of the gods.” Yet, in this instance, in Tamil Nadu, Indra is revered as the god of rain.

Unequivocally, Surya Pongal, the second day of the festival, is the most important day. Similar to pagan festivals around the world, Surya Pongal pays reverence to the Sun, for sustaining the growth of crops; and even more broadly, for nurturing all of existence. “Surya” literally means “Sun.” This day is the most exciting of all the days, as there are the many processions throughout the streets.

The third day of the festival, Mattu Pongal, honors cows by decorating them with all sorts of bells and whistles (literally). One has to wonder whether a cow truly appreciates being
painted; regardless, the bovine receive attention normally reserved for the divine. It is quite the sight indeed.

While the entire festival is an elaborate worshipping of the gods (or more specifically, the Sun), the final day, Kannum Pongal focuses on the family and the food. In a certain sense, Kannum Pongal is very similar to the American holiday of Thanksgiving. The word “pongal” literally translates as “boiling over.” Thus, the name of the festival is symbolic of being thankful for the abundance of food provided by the harvest.

During the four days, many families create small shrines outside their doorways, ranging from candle arrangements to decorative paintings, called kolam. The kolam designs are made from brightly colored powders. Many streets are lined with lights, as well.

The music of Pongal is folk music; I will write more on the specifics in the following post, on my Pongal experiences. So until then here are a handful of pictures. Needless to say, any writings, photographs or video footage fails to capture the true essence of Pongal…And yes, the prashad (food) was more delicious than it looked...

DRUM SHOP IN CHENNAI

2008-02-15T17:56:00.002Z

Hi everyone. I just wanted to share the address of the drum shop in Chennai where I bought my tabla set. I would HIGHLY recommend Abdul's shop if you are in the market for any Indian percussion instrument or sitar or sarod. The quality of the instruments are excellent and the prices are very reasonable. More updates to come shortly...

Abdul Kareem
A.R. Dawood & Sons
286, (New 154), Triplicane High Road
Chennai – 600 05
+91 44 28546934 (tel)
akareem@airtelbroadband.in

MORE TABLA LESSONS

2008-02-03T09:12:00.000Z

Since the New Year, I have taken several tabla lessons with Chandran. It has been a real treat to learn how to play this drum – although I will be the first to admit that I do not “know” how to play the tabla, as it takes years of studying even to begin to understand the instrument. The tabla is my favorite percussion instrument (for reasons I will get to in another post); in short, I have always been fascinated by the sound of the drum and seemingly infinite possibilities of rhythms of the drum.

I must admit that one of the most basic elements of playing the tabla, the positioning of the body, is very difficult for me. When I practice with Chandran, it can only be for about thirty minutes or so before I need to stretch my legs. Because in Western society children are taught to sit in chairs, and not on the ground, we grow up with a different capacity of flexibility than most Indians. For many people, Eastern or Western, this is not a big deal; but for those who know me, I have very long legs and extensive cross-legged sitting can be a problem for me! Oh well…

The coordination of the various finger positioning and moments is a tremendous challenge, to say the least. A true student of the tabla spends countless hours every day to perfect the mechanics of playing the tabla. Being that I understand the complexity of the training, I do not let myself get overwhelmed when I struggle to play something correctly. Further, like all instruments, tabla is best played with a clear mind.

As I have written in an earlier post, the different finger strokes, called bols, each produce a unique sound. There are eleven “main” bols; although, I only know of about half of them (I would never claim to truly “know” any bol). Each bol (finger stroke) can be played on a different part of the drum; so there are a multitude of combinations of sounds that can be made. There are three parts of the drumhead that are played: the edge of tabla (called the kinar), the interior white portion of the head (called the chantii) and the black circle in the middle of the head (called the siyahi). The pitch of the drum is highest on the edge of the drum.

Since my first lesson, Chandran always has asserted that to get the proper tone out of the drum, the bol (the finger stroke) must be done as quickly and tightly as possible. Your finger must never rest on the head of the drum. “It is like you are touching fire,” Chandran has told me. “Or like [the movement of] a snake.” It can be very strenuous to always have the fingers hovering above the drum without any support.

View of Marina Beach from Chandran's house.

In another life, I would love to dedicate forty-plus hours a week to study the tabla. The paradoxically “gift and curse” element of the tabla is that because, in my opinion, it the most expansive and complicated percussion instrument, it does sound the best; nevertheless, the tabla requires an unprecedented level of dedication just to play it on an elementary level and get the proper sounds out of the drums. I know that when I get back to New York, I will be practicing tabla when I can; yet, I do wish I could really learn how to play this instrument. That being said, I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to learn more about the tabla.

I will post more videos when I can.

Kalai with parrot

TIGHTROPE

2008-02-01T10:17:00.000Z

Below are two short videos I shot in Pondicherry. The footage speaks for itself - I'm not sure what else to say besides that this is just another (random) example of how drums are used in Indian culture/how children are forced to work...Enjoy?

PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE TABLA SHOP

2008-01-29T07:33:00.001Z

Abdul at work.

A shop assistant tightening a head of a duggi.

Abdul rubs chalk on the head to prolong the life of the head; apparently, it prevents moisture from damaging it.

Kalai, myself and Abdul

From left to right: a stainless steel duggi, my copper duggi, and a brass duggi. The smaller drum in the middle is a tabla.

Chandran tunes my tabla, and that is my duggi in the background.

Wooden drum shells.

Bless this mess?

Old man crafting a sarod (or sitar, I am not sure).