Ragas

Sequenza21
In 1970 or thereabouts, Cage wrote his Song Books, a collection of 90 vocal/theater pieces. Solo for Voice 58, from the Song Books, amounts to a collection of pitches upon which the vocalist can improvise, and include microtones. From this raw material are derived the "18 Microtonal Ragas", and this is a fascinating and often beautiful album. The vocalist, Amelia Cuni, is nothing short of amazing as she puts forth a virtuosic performance in conjunction with three other musicians on electronics/drones and percussion. While this could have amounted to mere chinoiserie, the musical instincts of Cuni and her colleagues, along with the freedom afforded by Cage himself, make this a very individual and wonderful composition, one which acknowledges the influence of Eastern musics without imitating them for the sake of cheap imitation.

Adam Rudolph, Go: Organic Orchestra & Brooklyn Raga Massive - Ragmala: A Garland of Ragas (2019) {Meta Records}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44.1kHz - Official Digital Download (bandcamp.com) -> 599 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 282 Mb | Cover | 5% repair rar
© 2019 Meta Records
Jazz / World Music / Orchestral / Creative Music

On the remarkable new album Ragmala – A Garland of Ragas, Rudolph’s Go: Organic Orchestra and Brooklyn Raga Massive form a singular ensemble that vibrantly bridges musical and cultural distinctions. The result is a breathtaking set of music that carves an egalitarian and communal way forward while reverberating with echoes of the recent and ancient past. Drawing parallels with another ground-breaking and singular epic, Ragmala has already been referred to as a Bitches Brew for the 21st century (Ahmet Ali Arslan of Açık Radyo Istanbul).

In April 2019, 22a boss and multi-instrumentalist, Tenderlonious embarked on a trip to Pakistan to work with Lahore based instrumental quartet, Jaubi. Following on from the highly acclaimed, three track limited edition 10” vinyl release of ‘Tender in Lahore’ earlier this year, 22a presents the full suite of improvised ragas from a one day recording session in Lahore, Pakistan. The pure sounds of Indian and Pakistani classical music act as a framework for deep and spiritual improvisations between Tenderlonious on flute & soprano saxophone and Jaubi band members, Kashif Ali Dhani on tabla and vocals, Zohaib Hassan Khan on sarangi and Ali Riaz Baqar on guitar. This cross cultural collaboration also features Polish composer and keys player Marek Pędziwiatr on synth drone.