Common Chords: Music without borders

Musicians from different parts of the world came together as Common Chords to play for the audience.

KARACHI:

Music is an explosive expression of humanity. It is a language beyond culture, ethnicity and customs. It is a form of art that communicates and unites emotions and empathy without words. The concept was put into practice on Saturday, at National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa).

Common Chords is an initiative by the Goethe-Institute, in collaboration with Napa, to demonstrate a fusion of eastern and western music. This collaboration tradition has been introduced to invite musicians from all around the globe to Pakistan as well as to increase exposure of the local nationals in the context.

The night began with a phenomenal jugalbandi performed by Nafees Ahmed on sitar and Ustad Bashir Khan on tabla. As the audience waited in anticipation for this performance, the director of the program, Mr Arshad Mehmood spontaneously remarked, ‘’us waqt ki talkhi yaad karo jab saaz milayi jatay hain (recall the bitterness of the times when melodies are merged).’’ Undoubtedly, the musical duet won the hearts of many and successfully communicated the power of eastern classical culture.

The String Thing was the highlight of the event. The String Thing incorporates rhythms and tunes from Latin America and Africa as well as elements of jazz, rock and pop-music, thus creating a new exciting repertoire of sensual and entertaining music. However, this time they conducted a classical-jazz fusion with Bashir Khan and Nafees Ahmed. After their tour to Lahore and Islamabad, their last performance in Karachi was met with surprise as they produced this unique genre of music effectively. The audience shared a connection as they performed their rhythmic interplay. The string quartet started off with a syncopated composition, which proceeded with vocal and instrumental progression. It was surely a treat to witness them incorporate such profound and subtle jazz influenced pieces of music.  Their last performance was a combined display of eastern classical and western styles of music which they entitled, Musik ohne Grenzen, which translates to, Music without borders.

The night was full of surprises. The US consulate general and jazz singer Phillip Nelson galvanized the audience by his talented display of singing. He was followed by a performance executed by students of Napa; Nadir Abbas’s astounding raag along with Nafees Ahmed’s daughter.  The audience expressed immense admiration and appreciation at the occasion.

Another important personality of the event was the Dutch pianist, Mike Del Ferro. On Mike’s return after eight years to Pakistan, Arshad Mehmood stressed on his immense significance and potential, “We are so grateful to Mike, he is a great friend and musician, but more importantly, a humble person who accepted our invite despite the country’s perceived situation.” Mike expressed his delight on being able to perform with the top most musicians of South Asia and before such an appreciative audience, “It is such a treat to be invited here to play such music and to be transcended to another music world where we all belong mutually. “Mike further said that he plans to come back in November to experience this royalty again.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 6^th, 2014.

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