33 f
Ivan Duran & Sam Harris “T
he name change best represented what we really were. One of the things I take pride in is that half the Collective aren’t Garifuna. There are people who will always try to divide Belizean musicians by their ethnic groups,
which is the worst thing you can do because it’s when you com- bine all these elements that you get unique results. And that’s what makes it most interesting.”
Duran himself has been one of the core musicians from the start, though it’s only post-Wátina that his name appears with the others. “I didn’t want it to be a distraction,” he explains. “Wátina changed everything, and I came out and accepted that I’m part of the music too, and shouldn’t be afraid of any criticism about it. Now I’m co-writing many of the songs. In general there’s a consis- tency in the arrangements that has a lot to do with my own musi- cal aesthetic. I’m minimalist in the way I shape things, always tend- ing to play less rather than more. Al [Ovando], who’s been my engineer for the past fourteen years, also plays on all the songs – bass, guitar, and jawbone.”
Since Wátina the GC has worked on another series of out- standing Belizean albums – including Umalali: The Garifuna Women’s Project, and last year’s release Ayó. On my last day in Benque the core members came to the studio to rehearse for a concert that weekend in Belize City. They gathered in a circle – dreadlocked Mohobub Flores tapping drumsticks on four turtle shells hanging from his neck; beside him Ovando laying down a percolating bass-line; Desiree Diego wielding her maracas like boxing gloves, Denmark Flores slapping the big segunda drum, Chella Torres on clave, Sam Harris playing lead guitar and Lloyd Augustine the rhythm guitar.
In late May the musicians of the Garifuna Collective begin a European tour that takes them to Germany, Switzerland, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Meanwhile Duran has plenty pro- jects on the go for Stonetree. “I’m always working on several recordings simultaneously, at different stages. We don’t work fast. Most albums take around two years in all.”
“When I turned 40 almost two years ago I said I wanted to make 20 more before I’m 50. I’ve got most of those slotted in already. Recently I’ve started working with artists from outside Belize – Drew Gonsalves and his band Kobo Town, an amazing musician from Trinidad who’s based in Toronto; Samito, a young artist from Mozambique who’s in Montreal; and Guayo Cedeño, one of my favourite guitarists, who was on Wátina. We’re putting the finishing touches to a recording by Calypso Rose, from Tobago, living in New York.”
The big release this year will be from Honduran Garifuna singer and guitarist Aurelio, with whom Duran has been working almost from the start of Stonetree. “Aurelio had this incredible ride in the past few years where he had to quit his job as a congressman in Honduras to take on Andy’s tribute tour. He had to fill his shoes right away, and spent two years travelling the world. In that period we recorded his CD Laru Beya. We had to show the world this was- n’t going to end with Andy. But though Laru Beya was very well received, there was something missing – the village soul that’s been such a big part of Aurelio’s career. This new album was conceived by him and his mum, who taught him many of the songs. It’s really beautiful, more acoustic – like we’re going back to the village.”
In his acceptance speech at Womex, Andy Palacio talked of “the challenge to make music with a higher purpose that goes beyond simple entertainment.” Despite a shrinking record indus- try, commercial pressures, and economic restraints, Duran and his small team at Stonetree continue to fulfill that mission – and party on the beach too.
www.stonetreerecords.com F
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84