Unless you’re living so far off the grid that the likelihood of you even coming across these words is non-existent, you know what’s on the mind of everyone in the world today. I fall squarely into the demographic of “everyone,” and thus the pandemic concerns that are gripping the whole planet have me in their encompassing grasp. But I think myself reasonably level-headed and thus believe that with all humanity pulling together, the virus can and will be overcome.
Long before our current situation and all the ensuing collateral damage, there were many people in this big old world making music in the face of adversity. That unflagging spirit is one reason global music remains of interest to me, as well as ample reason to believe the world will emerge from this crisis, however overstated or understated it may be. The healing power of music is not a fanciful notion. It is a reality. And in these trying times, the need for it can be felt with every fiber of one’s being. Here’s my take on some recent releases that won’t fully cure what ails us but just might make the path toward humankind’s eventual triumph a little easier.
Celtic Women
Celtic music doesn’t require introduction or explanation, so all that really needs to be said about the compilation Celtic Women (Putumayo, 2020) is that it’s up to the usual high standards of the Putumayo label. Okay, I’ll say a little more. Their collections tend to be short in running time (this one’s under 37 minutes) but rich in quality. All of the featured artists are rooted in Irish and Scottish music, and while those two nations don’t represent the whole of Celtic music or culture, the lineup scores by going well beyond sounds that have become clichéd or stereotypical. Not much in the way of shamrock-adorned jigs and reels here. Rather, the songs are mainly medium tempo acoustic charmers, some in English and some not, with a relaxed, subtly stirring feel. Songs like Emily Smith’s “Take You Home” and Cara Dillon’s “Hill of Thieves” reveal the kind of Celtic strains that seeped into Americana music, while the arrangements and instrumentation throughout have a low-key sway that perfectly fits the consistent lilting beauty of the voices showcased. It’s lovely stuff, and one to own even if you have a fair number of Celtic various-artist albums already.
Eileen Ivers
There are likewise Celtic flavors to be sampled on Scatter the Light (Musical Bridge Records, 2020), the latest from master fiddler Eileen Ivers. But she also goes beyond, applying the balm of her passionate bowing to the lead vocals of Matthew Mancuso on the bluesy opener “Shine, “bringing chamber music finesse to the mellower tracks, game-changing traditional gospel tunes “Go Tell it on the Mountain” and “Children Go” with a zest that feels equal parts Nashville and New Orleans and generally never taking the predictable route.
Ivers is no slouch on the mandolin and banjo, but it’s her fiddling, which shreds as much as it soothes, that makes the album a grand mashup of styles (a dollop of rock here, hints of country and funk there) likely to please listeners of all sorts.
Giuseppe Paradiso and Meridian 71
Drummer/percussionist Giuseppe Paradiso and his band Meridian 71 give us Metropolitan Sketches (no apparent label, 2020), an hour long jazzy excursion that features both tightly arranged intricate jams and sparser interludes that are no less impressive. True to the title, this all-instrumental disc comes across like a soundtrack for city living in all its alternately busy and reflective nuances.
Paradiso’s drum set artistry is prominent but never too indulgent. All four of his limbs work in perfect harmony (check out the buildup that is “Introduction to Tuntkah/The Caravan”) and the instruments that accompany his impeccable on-and-offbeat foundation (guitar, bass, piano, Rhodes, trumpet, sax and, interestingly, Senegalese sabar drums) form a mosaic of moods ranging from ethereal to thunderous. Easily classifiable as jazz, the album has plenty of global shadings and is a sonic adventure of a very high order.
Vedan Kolod
While my knowledge of Siberian folk music doesn’t run deep, I found myself quite entranced by Wild Games (CPL Music, 2020) by the two-women-one-man trio Vedan Kolod. They wield a variety of instruments that are plucked, strummed blown and struck, some of the names of which were familiar to me, some not. Most of the songs are traditional and all have the ring of tradition. A blind listen might lead you to believe the music is Native American in origin, what with its steady rhythms, chant-like (at times spoken) vocals, droning ambiance and ongoing use of (presumably) wooden flutes. But the mandolin and bouzouki riffs that comprise the bulk of the melodies (often bolstered by the twang of a Jew’s harp) set it apart and bring about a shamanic quality that’s both mysterious and comforting. Consider it healing music for our times.
Rafiki Jazz
The Middle East meets India, Africa and, well, a good many other locales on Saraba Sufiyana (Konimusic, 2019), the latest from the 9-piece U.K. band Rafiki Jazz. From the very first track, a seamless blend of sounds and textures converge. Want to hear how good an Arabic oud, a West African kora and a Caribbean steel pan sound together? This disc has got you covered. Likewise in the wind department (bansuri, ney, kawala), the percussion section (tabla, djembe, pandeiro), the lyric and vocal sources (Arabic, Hebrew, Mandinka, Aramaic, Kashmiri, Portuguese, etc.) and the way each track spins a web of seamless fusion that makes a term like “world music” entirely applicable. But never does the band force or overplay their hand.
The CD back cover describes these tunes as “new and revisited heritage songs, poems and devotional texts.” Believe it. This ensemble is not merely out to prove how skilled they are at playing and singing. They reach for the spirit, and each level of their layered approach (most evident in the entwined female vocals that link a Sufi lullaby with a Gaelic walking song on track 4) applies a fresh balm of beauty to their approach. Quite simply, this disc is one of the finest, farthest-reaching combinations of vocal and instrumental influences you’d ever want to savor. It’s a must.
Jahmark and the Soulshakers
Reggae has been a source of comfort and spiritual reassurance to me for many years. It was my gateway to the music of the rest of the world. The reggae scene here in Southern California is one of the strongest anywhere and a number of veteran artists contribute to that fact. Jahmark and the Soulshakers are a longstanding reggae fixture in these parts, and their most recent, Happiness (Rough Sounds/Banana Boat, 2018), not only takes its title from something we all pursue, but has a hand in providing it. There are 15 tracks here, and both roots reggae (“Can’t Stop This,” “House of Jah”) and the more pop-ish kind (“Rock the House,” “Rock You Baby”) get their grooves on.
Front man Jahmark has an inviting but subtly urgent vocal style comparable to such greats as Dennis Brown, Luciano and Steel Pulse’s David Hinds. Plus he’s got on his side the skills of producer/bassist Mike Irwin, whose Roughsounds Studio is increasingly recognized as a major source of fine California reggae. Toss in a topnotch crew of real live musicians who know how to play in the classic Jamaican style, and you’ve got a reggae release that’s sure to uplift in these troubled times.
Marla Leigh
The proficiency of percussionist Marla Leigh is due in large measure to her having been mentored by another master percussionist, John Bergamo, and inspired by Layne Redmond, who, like Leigh, helped keep the ancient tradition of female frame drummers alive in modern times. Rhythms of Tof Miriam (Marla Leigh, 2020) is dedicated to Bergamo and Redmond, who both passed away in 2013, but gets its title from the Biblical prophetess who harnessed the spiritual power of the drum. Although it’s the serpentine pulses of Leigh’s frame drums that set the tracks in motion, they’re joined at various times by oud, ney, mandol, kamanche and Leigh’s own flute, setting in place musical conversations that sound rooted in centuries past and sturdily evocative enough to endure for centuries to come. It’s labeled as “Music to inspire, awaken and empower” as well as “Music for movement, meditation and healing.” Upon hearing it, you’d be hard-pressed to argue with either contention.
Where many percussion-based albums get their strength from the primal power of the drum, this one takes cues from the quieter side of the sonic picture but is every bit as powerful in its own right. Interestingly, there’s a bonus track that’s all strings and no percussion and doesn’t break the spell one bit. This is Leigh’s debut album, and it’s a beauty.
Apollo Chamber Players
Houston’s Apollo Chamber Players take the sound of a string quartet well beyond classical expectations on Within Earth (Navona Records, 2019). The two movements that comprise the opening “String Quartet No. 6” channel the intensity of Afro-Brazilian rhythms from a strictly melodic standpoint. “Four Dreams” is a sonic representation of the Australian Aboriginal concept of Dreamtime (the impact of dreams on creation and vice versa) featuring passages that are alternately low key sparse and all out intricate. “May (Cloud”) explores the music of Hanoi, juxtaposing the Vietnamese capital’s former and present glory with the addition of dan bau, a monochord folk instrument played by guest artist Van-Anh Vo. The moody twang and drone of the dan bau compliments the strings in ways that feel like the sound of a mystery with an answer just beyond reach.
As rich as those first three pieces are, it’s the conclusion, “Within Earth, Wood Grows” that really dazzles to the max. The dan bau is back, along with 14 additional players from other Houston ensembles for a full orchestral build. Inspired by the words of Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh and the natural upward expansion suggested by the title, the piece grows and flowers over the course of nearly a quarter hour, interweaving ominous strains and more soothing, hopeful sounds. The latter eventually prevails, not with grandiosity but with pure finesse and the feel of music rising to utmost heights.
Apollo Chamber Players is comprised of Matthew J. Detrick and Anabel Ramirez Detrick on violins, Whitney Bullock on viola and Matthew Dudzik on cello. There’s much more to them and their works than I can write about here, so please give www.apollochamberplayers.org a look.
headline photo: Marla Leigh
Author: Tom Orr
Tom Orr is a California-based writer whose talent and mental stability are of an equally questionable nature. His hobbies include ignoring trends, striking dramatic poses in front of his ever-tolerant wife and watching helplessly as his kids surpass him in all desirable traits.