Author Archives: Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Event review: 2012 Istanbulive 4 brought Turkish music and culture back to NY again.

Date: July 29, 2012
Venue: Damrosh Park Bandshell/Lincoln Center

Review by Jim Hoey

For the fourth year in a row a hardworking Turkish group of promoters and musicians have succeeded in bringing the sounds of their country right here to NYC where a large group of Turkish emigres are eager to hear music from home, and locals can hear something exotic and new. In past years, it’s happened at Central Park SummerStage, but this year they moved it to Lincoln Center’s 62nd street bandshell space. Despite a raging thunderstorm just hours before the start time, with bolts of lightning ripping through the darkened skies, the 3 groups on the bill from Turkey were able to take the stage after the storm died down when it was safe for the musicians to play.

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Music listings – 8/6 through 8/12

1. Sidi Touré w. THE PEDRITO MARTINEZ GROUP  & WOUTER KELLERMAN

Date: Monday, August 6, 2012
Time: 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Venue: Marcus Garvey Park (18 Mount Morris Park West, New York, NY 10027, 212-860-1394)
Tickets: $18
Genre: desert blues/Mali music, Afro-Cuban rumba, world music

Sidi Touré draws inspiration from traditional Malian music and religion, but is informed by western blues, rock, and culture. The winner of two Malian national awards for best singer, Touré was leader of a regional orchestra and is a nationally renowned figure in his home country. In 2011, he released Sahel Folk, his critically acclaimed debut album and toured North America for the first time playing at prestigious venues including Lincoln Center and the ChicagoWorld Music Festival. His 2012 follow-up, Koïma is a musically rich and luxurious album mixing tradition and modernity, African magic and city-dwelling dilemmas.

The Pedrito Martinez Group has its roots planted firmly in the Afro-Cuban rumba tradition, bata rhythms and vocal chants of Yoruba and Santeria. Helmed by famed Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martinez — who has lent his unique hand drumming skills to over a hundred records spanning the worlds of Latin and pop music — the group has toured internationally, gaining a steady fan base for its mix of Caribbean inspired funk. The New York Times sums up their sound up aptly, calling it, “complex, blenderized Africa-to-the-New-World funk.”

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Dafnis Prieto: one of my favorite NY drummers in NY

Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Since coming to New York I have played with many drummers, but there is one drummer who I haven’t played with yet, but would love to: Dafnis Prieto. Whom I have already introduced to you, my dear reader, last year in this post.

What I love about Prieto is that he transposes elements from his Afro-Cuban musical background, rumba and son, into a jazzy drumming style incorporating congas and timbales in his playing. He’s able to to play very complex, poly rhythmic structures with extraordinary speed and precision. No wonder he’s one of Michel Camilo’s favorite drummers!

He’s putting out a new CD and here is his EPK to it. Very well produced. In the next DooBeeDoo music listings I will announce his CD release event dates at the Jazz Standard in NY.

Event review: “Wake Up, Madagascar” with legendary “King of Salegy” (Eusebe) Jaojoby!

Date: Saturday, July ,21, 2012
Venue: Le Poisson Rouge (NY)

Concert review by Chris Arnold

Thanks to the Le Poisson Rouge  we were treated to 21 non-stop, infectious songs by Madagascar’s top stars and showcasing distinct musical traditions not found anywhere else. For fans of guitar music it was an extra special treat with 3 very different styles on display.

Guitar virtuoso Charles Kely kicked of the concert with 4 songs of mesmerizing fretwork on a classical guitar that would put most jazz guitarists to shame.  Without bending any notes and playing without a pick, Kely created a sound that perfectly blends traditional and modern.  Built on his regional ba gasy music with jazzy phrasing up and down the neck and classical guitar finger picking mixed in, Kely synthesizes rhythm, melody and harmony taking an African approach to the guitar to a master’s level.  His musicianship and unique musical voice make Western “world music” critics’ discussions of authenticity irrelevant

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Short film documentarty: Shun Hattori, Japanese tap dancer in NY.

Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

I think I don’t know of any other people or country around the world, who are so crazy about US culture than the  Japanese. Even more than Iranians?! I don’t know of any other country around the world that ignores its own culture than Japan. Maybe it sounds cruel and unfair but I found this out by living in Japan for such a long time.

When you talk to Japanese in Japan and here in New York about their country and culture, you will be surprised, how much they don’t know about their own country. Often they don’t know anything about the things New Yorkers are interested in, such as  Zen, Kabuki, Noh, Japanese fashion, martial arts vs samurai, Japanese politics and history, Toru Takemitsu, Butoh, Kiari, Japanese Classical music and many more things. Everything that is coming from outside interests them more than their own roots.

I can understand that especially young people are not interested or don’t like things of their own culture, but at least they should know about them. For example, I know of young Iranians, who are not into Persian Classical music, but they still know something about it and know the famous singer Mohamed Reza Shajarian, or young Indians, who are bored by Indian Classical music, do know Ravi Shankar and his music, Malians people, who love Salif Keita, still  appreciate their own roots music.

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