At a time when entire albums are spun off computers in dimly-lit basements, EarthSync is a music label that has dug its fingers deep into the full, rich earth, shaken its hair loose, thrown its arms wide open and inhaled deeply of the seas and the soil. They travel the world, listening as people share their ancient stories with them, through their music, movement and memories.
When the tsunami hit, they travelled across the lands affected, recording their indigenous music and their unbounded sorrow, bringing them together in the multiple-award winning ‘Laya Project'. Five year later, they would revisit the music as a celebration of life and hope, for ‘A New Day'. For ‘Nagore Sessions', the rousing call of Sufi chants met compelling percussion from the Middle East and contemporary Western instruments.
Then, they went looking for the Great Songs that praised the King, back in the ancient 13th century kingdoms of Myanmar. They recreated it, centuries later, with contemporary Western musicians, for ‘Voice over the Bridge'.
But what EarthSync will perform at the November Fest will be their album ‘Business Class Refugees'. Patrick Sebag and Yotam Agam travelled around the world, absorbing folk and local music from vastly different cultures, and infused them with a life of their own. The album also features distinguished artists from around Asia and the Middle East — such as Mahesh Vinayakram, Erez Lev Ari, B.V. Raghavendran, Navin Iyer, Yoav Bunzel, Anuradha Viswanathan, Murad Ali and Mishko M'Ba.
To this, they then add dance, as well as striking visuals from their journeys, rare footage from locations never caught on camera before –— for a show that promises to redraw the peripheries of performance.
Date: November 20
Venue: Sir Mutha Venkatasubba Rao Concert Hall
Time: 7.15 p.m.