The Whole Music Experience

Photo from rockpaperscissors.biz Photography by Ashley Coombes Julie Fowlis (Scotland) Cuilidh Shoeshine Records and Cadiz Music Hailing from one of the westernmost points of Europe, on the island North Uist, vocalist Julie Fowlis shares ancient and contemporary Scotch Gaelic songs with an international audience on her recording, Cuilidh . This crossover artist and music-preserver prefers to sing the songs in Scotch Gaelic, a language spoken only by 60,000 people and on the remote island where Fowlis resides. The Scotch Gaelic dialect bodes well for these lilting melodies reflecting on scandals, shipwrecks and defiant women who either walk out on their own wedding or marry someone against their parents' wishes. According to the press notes, the songs on this album range from 10 years ago to several 100 years ago. The songs are sung in a clear lyrical voice backed by traditional Celtic/Gaelic instruments and the songs range from rousing to melancholic ballads. And al...

Sultan Khan (Sarangi) Manju Mehta (Sitar) Umeed Sense World Music Sense World Music has brought us several jugalbandi (duets) and ensembles featuring women and men musicians. Following this tradition, Umeed features the illustrious Sarangi Player Sultan Khan and the formidable woman Sitarist Manju Mehta. While I have heard few jugalbandi recordings featuring these two North Indian instruments, this pairing seems natural, yet exotic. Even better, this 2-CD set was recorded live at the Saptak Festival so listeners get to experience the spirit of the moment. The musicians play their instruments in a singing style, imitating classical Indian vocals. To do this well, musicians spend years in intense training with gurus. By the time they reach the recital stage these musicians are versed in beat cycles, vocal styles, and mastership over their respective instruments. When they reach the stage where Khan and Mehta are, the musicians can literally leave you breathless when you hear the...

Kadri Gopalnath & Ronu Majumdar Evolution Sense World Music This is not the first time I am hearing saxophone on a classical Indian music recording, nor will it be the last. Saxophonist Kadri Gopalnath and Bansuri flautist Ronu Majumdar unite their musical gifts on Evolution with spectacular results. Although Gopalnath has modified his saxophone to perform classical Indian micro-tones, it still has a jazz-like quality and so it gives off an otherworldly timbre in this Indian classical atmosphere. Majumdar brings his own bamboo-wind pyrotechnics to this recording. The musician has phenomenal breath control which is essential to playing the flute and there are times when Majumdar leaves his audience members breathless on this live recording. For anyone who has heard earlier work of this musician will know just what to expect. Majumdar happens to be one of those musicians with the ability to take his listeners' minds straight to the stratosphere. When combined this mus...