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Strange things in the land of kings >> Musafir's Rajasthani hootenanny
by RUPERT BOTTENBERG
The Rajasthan region of India--literally, "the land of kings"--is a bubbling pot of different cultures, explains Azzouz, manager and director of the Musafir collective. Invaded ages ago by the Turkish Moguls, Rajasthan is an intriguing mixture of Hindu and Islamic traditions, musical and otherwise. "You can see the most joyful aspects of Islamic architecture in Rajasthan--huge buildings with lots of diamonds and riches. It reflects that the kings there, the Rajas, were very proud. The music is very splendid and flamboyant, which is a reflection of this. "Also, it's a tradition of warriors, so you can hear that camel feeling, that horse rhythm in some songs. The horse goes and goes and goes faster, so this way you can get into a trance, like when the horse is at full speed, going kamikaze on the battlefield." Fuckin' A, I say! The music's just part of it, though. Add up the different elements and you've got a kaleidoscopic carnival that's part Jim Rose, part Rama Rum Raisin. It seems that Azzouz makes yearly journeys to Rajasthan, shopping for weirdoes to keep his troupe fresh. "Along the road, you can find bear trainers and puppeteers, people who have learned a trick and do it their whole life. So I chose some nice tricks to go on the road, and they've become real characters. Like Harish, a gentle boy who has a transvestite dress. But this is not a sexual thing. It's based on the tradition of a the wedding of a Maharaja who's bride never showed up. "Then we have Bansi, who does Bhawai dancing. He comes on with a funny face, and you think, 'What is this? He doesn't dance very well.' Then a helper brings him a glass, and then a jug full of water. He puts these on his head and starts to dance again. When he has six glasses on his head and two on his feet, everything in balance, we bring out the nail carpet. "Then we have two Kalberias, the original gypsies, who are from the snake charmer caste. These are very strange people. I'm usually not too eager to go visit their region because... it's very special. They have strange faces, strange attitudes. Still, I took two girls from this colony. They do the snake dance, about the mythology of the cobra, how to possess it and how to become the cobra. It's not rehearsed--it can be magic, making you think you really see a cobra on stage. They have strange things inside them, these people." Strange, Mr. Azzouz? That's putting it mildly.
At Centre Pierre-Péladeau on Friday, September 17, 8pm, $28.50 |
"This is not a fusion album," says Arnaud Azzouz of Musafir's disc Dhola Maru, "but Musafir is a fusion of the different arts of Rajasthan, and of different social systems, with Muslims and Hindus of all different castes."