World Music Festival
Certainly, this musical event is not the first of its kind in London but the variety and scope of this five week programme (August 8 September 10) of concerts with a residential "Summer School," open workshops, talks, films and demonstrations is such that all music aficionados would have something to interest them.
The activities in the village are based in two areas of Holland Park, the open air theatre and the Yucca Lawn, and in the Commonwealth Institute Arts Centre. With the famous Notting Hill Carnival and an official Children's Carnival fitted into the schedule, an unforgettable festive atmosphere was assured.
The artists taking part in The Village include both British based musicians and a number of musicians from abroad with an impressive array of contemporary musical and traditional instruments.
Featuring on the bill of British-based artists are Abacush, a Women's reggae band, black-jazz musicians, Harry Beckett and Dudu Pukwana who would be playing together for the first time. When the Hemel Hempstead Brass Band and pipers from Northumbria and Scotland put in the British traditional music touch, it would provide an interesting contrast to the breath-taking array of international traditional folk music rural music from the villages of Jaisalmer and Balmers in Rajasthan; Islamic music from the south of Morocco, Kora and xylophone music performed by members of traditional Griot families from the Ivory Coast, to name a few. Latin American folk and popular music from Mexico and Brazil, traditional African music and dance from Benue State in Western. Nigeria, popular and folk music from Cyprus and bagpipe music from Serbia would definitely give musicologists something to chew on.
Classical music from India, Japan, musicians and dancers from the village. of Batuan in Bali to perform orchestral music and present a varied programme of Temple and Court Dances, and a per- formance by a creative music group from the centre for Nigerian Cultural Studies in Zaria under the direction of the distinguished American jazz flautist Yussuf Lateef would provide an illustration of the coming together of the world of jazz and traditional African music and give a complete picture of the richness of the event.
The lecture and workshop programme involving such personalities as Bayo Martins, the African Drummer, author and Journalist; Komal Kothari, Director of the Jajasthan Institute of Folklore; Peggy Harper, eminent choreographer and teacher of African dance, are scheduled to lead discussions on aspects of music.
On August 16, the Commonwealth Arts Centre theatre was the venue for the last performance of Amjad Ali Khan, the virtuoso Sarod (a string instrument) player from India where a fully-packed house gave standing a ovation to his hauntingly eerie and caressing strains accompanied by an excellent percussionist.
Observed the 32 year old instrumentalist in an interview during the break. "Definitely the mood of the audience. has a profound effect on my performance but generally the audience here has been wonderful". Coming from a family with centuries of sarod playing experience and a mother who was a dancer, the artistic tradition, he said, is being maintained in the family, and in fact, the expertise being passed on to his students. The Music Village engagement was one of the few he accepted. outside the country because he was fully booked in India the year round.
The high standard of Mr. Khan's performance and the mood of the appreciative audience is indicative of the patronage that this unique event is attracting.
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