When Bengal folk met contemporary jazz

We often hear ‘Music has no language’ from globally recognised musicians and lovers of this enchanting form of art. And crossing all barriers of language, a musical night recently saw artistes collaborating to bring a rare sound of joy. The Three Seas — a band that brings together West Bengal’s folk music and contemporary jazz — got a warm reception for their performance at an event by The Indian Museum and Australian High Commission.

The songs Santiniketan and Baul Country were the highlights of the night. “I composed the main theme of Santiniketan while I was staying there in 2009. I was practising on the rooftop and this melody came to me. I composed Baul Country recently. I wrote it specifically for our 2017 tour of Australia . It reflects the sounds and rhythms of the Baul percussion instruments,” said Matt Keegan, artistic director and saxophone player of the band.

The audience acknowledged the musicians with a thunderous applause after every song. For Raju Das Baul, it was an equally enthralling experience. “We are really getting amazing response in and outside the country for our music. Everyone loves our band. I want Baul songs to reach new audiences through this band,” he said.

After each song, Matt had a little anecdote for the audience. He shared how Steve Elphick, who plays acoustic bass, loves Indian spicy food, especially Lucknowi biryani. He also introduced the other two band members — Deoashish Mothey, lead vocalist, who also plays dotara, esraj and guitar and Gaurab Chatterjee, who plays drums and dubki. “It felt nice to be a part of such an interesting show. A number of musicians came down for the show as well. We were well appreciated but I feel the audience was a bit too subdued as compared to usual music lovers.” said Gaurab.