The Bauls are mystic minstrels living in rural West Bengal, India and Bangladesh. The Baul movement was at its peak in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and has now become popular again among the rural and city of India and Bangladesh. Their music and way of life have influenced a large swath of Bengali culture.
Bauls live either near a village or travel from village to village and earn their living from singing to the accompaniment of the ektara, a simple one-stringed instrument, and a drum called dubki. Bauls belong to an unorthodox devotional tradition, which has been influenced by Hinduism, Buddhism, Bengali Vasinavism and Sufi Islam, yet it is distinctly different from these. Bauls do not identify themselves with any organised religion nor with the caste system, special deities, temples or sacred places. Their emphasis lies on the importance of a person’s physical body as the place where God resides. Bauls are admired for this freedom from convention as well as their music and poetry. Baul poetry, music, song and dance are devoted to finding man’s relationship with God, and to achieving spiritual liberation. Their devotional songs can be dated back to the fifteenth century when they first appeared in Bengali literature.
Baul music represents a particular type of folk song, carrying influences of Hindu bhakti movements as well as the shuphi, a form of Sufi song. It is mainly sung in open air amidst the village audience. Songs are also used for instruction by the guru to teach his disciple in Baul philosophy, being transmitted orally from singer to singer. The language of the songs is continuously modernized thus giving it current relevance and meaning.
The maintenance of the Baul songs and the general context in which they are performed depend mainly on the social and economic situation of their practitioners, the Bauls. These have always been a relatively marginalized group, but their situation has worsened in recent decades due to the general impoverishment of rural Bangladesh. Village people as the main audience for Baul poets no longer have the means to support Bauls with part of their earnings...................................................................................................
CD'S WHERE BAPI WORKED
These words mean «the world of Bauls». A concert given by the group Baul Bishwa is an invitation to discover this world. The group was named by Bapi Das Baul who above all wishes to share his culture and music with others. Bapi is the representative of the eighth generation of the most talented and famous Baul family in India, his cultural roots are very important to him. Since his infancy he has been tought by his father, mother and from severel baul gurus , play instruments and to practice Baul meditation.
Bapi has brought about an evolution of Baul music, working mainly on the rhythm and a new way of singing and dancing, although on stage he continues to use only traditional instruments: usually several percussionists, a flutist and a Dotara (kind of mandolin) player. The musicians are all united by this «madness» (in the sense of inspiration) that is characteristic of Baul mystics. They don’t only play their instruments, but also sing and dance and go in deep and deep in devotion with miracles. Their ability to improvise is equaled only by their love of this music, that give them energy and happiness, communicated between themselves and to the audience. The women dancer brings grace and lightness in wild duets with Bapi. It is there that we reach the most intense moments of pure joy that occur during the traditional major Baul assemblies in India : the Mela.
Bapi is very keen to be on stage with his mother: Manju Das, the famous folk singer and his father Purna Das Baul who is the most well known and respected Baul in India. His grand father Nabani Das Baul was a famous yogi baul who composed a lot of music for Rabindranath Tagore’s poems and who wrote many songs. It is because of him that Tagore became so deeply interested in the Baul movement.
As his father did before him Bapi doesn’t hesitate to join other groups. His irresistible rhythm and traditional instruments have attracted the interest of groups such as Zapmama (for whom he composed and recorded the song India on the CD Sabsylma) Joseph Archer, Fun-da-mental, Eat Static, Transglobal Underground (with whom he composed and recorded the song Body Machine on the CD Rejoice Rejoice) and Natacha Atlas. One of his composition is part of the soundtrack of Tony Gatliff’s film: «Mondo». As he was involbed with sach a movement ,He created a new group «Senses» fusion with his traditional music and electronic sounds, played on acoustic instruments by musicians coming from any part of the world.
In India also Baul Bishwa is much appreciated by the public who recognize in Bapi a new generation, proud to perpetuate this living tradition. You will be enchanted to discover to what extent traditional Indian music is joyful and make you feel to dance.
MALAYSIA FESTIVAL
As I was searching for images to illustrate my thanksgiving blessings for you and those you love who are here on earth and in spirit, I kept coming across ones of food and beautiful adornments that depict feasts and fall time cheer. But what I'd like to illustrate more is the bonds of love and friendship we give thanks for, the blessings we've received throughout the last year and honoring as well as celebrating the bounty of those in our lives who mean the most to us, even those we've lost touch with or disconnected from.
So I'm wishing you a wonderful Thanksgiving, full of laughter, joy, abundance, remembrance, friendship and love.
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Hi friends, finally, it's done...the brandnew track of "reminder" in collaboration with "Rapha" is released today. The track "Beyound the Clouds" fascinates with a fantastic, classic melody, which has been well reproduced in all remixes. Daniel Kandi's 147 Remix is a really bomb on the dancefloor Thank you for your support...
Peace Sunday, June 5, 1982, Rose Bowl, no nukes - nuclear disarmament - stop nuclear madness concert - NYC - Central Park - June 12, 1982, 1,000,000 person march and rally for Nuclear Freeze. Photography and presentation by Curtis Rainbow. 'Give Peace a Chance' music by Achim Schultz. Inspiration by Yoko Ono. Dedicated to John Lennon.
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