35 f O Olcay Bayir
Web site:
losdesterrados.com/videos Booking:
info@losdesterrados.com Watch:
youtu.be/xyVf6UdJ1dQ
The nectar-toned Olcay Bayir, previ- ously featured in these pages, takes her musical inspiration from home in Anatolia, in particular her Alevi and Kurdish heritage. Classically trained, Olcay enjoys singing songs that reach people directly and fea- tures her own modern folk compositions and traditional songs in her set. With between four and seven on stage, her usual band features members of Kefaya (see above) though she sometimes features a more traditional line up with saz lutes.
Web site:
olcaybayir.com Booking:
info@kazum.co.uk Watch:
youtu.be/Mm60k7kzpEQ
These shores have long been blessed with the presence of Moroccan master oud player Hassan Erraji, but there are many other master instrumentalists based in the UK too. One such is Hassan Salih Nour, an outstanding Sudanese traditional singer and instrumentalist performing on the tanbura, the traditional five-string lyre of northern Sudan, as well as the oud. He performs solo, and with a traditional percussionist.
Web site:
konimusic.co.uk/portfolio/hassanerraji konimusic.co.uk/portfolio/hassan-salih-nour Booking:
info@konimusic.co.uk Watch:
youtu.be/3ZTe7ixGUJg
Another oud master, Attab Haddad, British born and bred to a secular Arab fam- ily, revels in showing the versatility of the oud in different musical contexts – pushing out from a classical Arabic repertoire. Main- ly performing with his own quintet (oud, flute, cello, double bass, percussion), Attab also has a trio project with a percussionist and flamenco guitarist exploring Spanish and Middle Eastern folk music.
Web site:
attabhaddad.com/ Booking:
info@attabhaddad.com Watch:
youtu.be/2h9lMepkg2Q
And an ageless classic, Alexander D
Great is a Trinidad-born/London-raised per- former of what he calls “SocaBlues, a sort of socio-political modern take on calypso/soca,” his own compositions musing on race, gen- der and humanitarian issues amongst many others. Check his counter-UKIP calypso, Copycat Crime. Alex performs either solo, with a trio or with a full ten-piece band. A seasoned festival performer (with Cam- bridge, Sidmouth, Africa Oyé, Bradford, Musicport, Nottingham Riverside, all under his belt), Alex also offers workshops for all age groups and in all settings.
Web site:
alexanderdgreat.net Booking:
adgreat7@gmail.com Watch:
youtu.be/9BN0RgaCi9o Looking for community participa-
tion?
An interesting development over the past decades has been the appearance of projects focused on musicians and singers who have migrated into the UK as refugees. Tyneside’s Crossings Band, born out of a community-run charity group, or the more formally-trained Manchester International Roots Orchestra (MIRO) are just two of many.
Karika Djal
ne of the most interesting of these community refugee projects is Karika Djal: an upbeat and eclectic Glasgow- based collective, reflecting
the members’ diverse Roma and non- Roma backgrounds – possibly unique in the UK. Initially formed as a funded pro- ject to promote integration in Glasgow’s Govanhill area, home to the UK’s largest Eastern European Roma community, Kari- ka Djal bring together musicians from the Czech Republic, Poland, Scotland, Slovakia and New Zealand with a repertoire drawn from all those clutures: Scottish and British folk, Romani traditional songs, klezmer tunes, Gypsy jazz and some Indi- an and Polynesian influences for good measure. Whilst the band has played con- cert sets at Celtic Connections, Solas and the Glasgow Mela amongst others, Karika Djal are also keen to become further involved in education projects, running workshops in schools, community centres and health centres, to engage audiences that might otherwise not be reached on the gigging circuit.
Web site:
facebook.com/ekarikaedjal Booking:
ekarikadjal@gmail.com Watch:
youtu.be/C2_EnRVktBQ
The more experienced Rafiki Jazz are a nine-piece “northern collective of global utopians” now in their tenth year. A main- stage band, fronted by Sufi singer Sarah Yaseen, Hebrew and Hindi vocalist Avital Raz alongside Senegalese kora player Kadi- aly Kouyaté and Egyptian oud and ney vir- tuoso Mina Salama, they play ecstatic acous- tic trance and dance grooves. Formed in Sheffield, their diverse musical roots cross language, cultural and religious barriers mixing West African, Pakistani, South Indi- an, Brazilian, Caribbean, Arabic, British and Middle Eastern roots and instrumentation. Their third CD Trance-It is released this year. Within their ranks, a plethora of workshops and masterclasses reflecting the band’s cul- tural diversity are on offer.
Web site:
rafikijazz.co.uk Booking:
info@konimusic.co.uk Watch:
vimeo.com/194187156
This is very much a work in progress: watch out for future instalments. And if you know of resident artists from minority com- munities in your area (or indeed anywhere in the UK), please tip me off via
editorial@frootsmag.com
F
Photo: Lisa Helen Craig
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