Caravansarail

"The music of Caravansarail flows from the crossroads where world music, jazz, and ethnic music meet. An oasis of beauty, intensity, vibration, and emotion, where East calls to West, and North embraces South. Space and time, style and rhythm fuse to generate a most unique sound, fully expressing timelessness…in the present."

So why are we mentioning this album? Because it was produced and arranged by guitarist Eric Sempe and Gerard Kurdjian, percussion and vocals. Gerard is well known for his work with the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music, where he has been Artistic Director since the launch in 1994.

Walking to Kashi is a fusion album in the true sense of the word. It draws its influences and inspiration from the four points of the compass – south to Africa, north to Scotland, east to India and west to the jazz traditions of America.

Featured artists include the great Pakistani vocal maestro Ustad Hassan Shagan, the Armenian doudouk player Varo Hovanisyan, Daoud Sadosai from Afghanistan on sarod and rebab, drummer Felix Sabal Lecco from Cameroon and Ikram Khan from India on sarangi. Their talents are interlaced with saxophone and flute from Scotsman Neil Gerstenberg and electric base from Ema Uthu and Jo Cappelletti.

The album is tuneful and presents a variety of creative and original ideas – for example the yearning sounds of the sarangi teamed with piano on Silk Road, Musafirin – a jaunty number based on a traditional Afghan song featuring guitar, synthesisers and saxophone and the eponymous Walking to Kashi which weaves a musical tapestry with sarangi, tin whistle, tablas, vocals and electric bass. There are jazz, raga and folk influences tastefully integrated with contemporary themes -- which are occasionally edgy and challenging.

You can buy or download the album here: Caravansarail

The View from Fez congratulates Gerard Kurdjian and promises we are saving our dirhams to buy a copy.


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