The engaging
mix of north Indian and world music from the band Galitcha
was the last concert in the Williams Lake Community Arts council
music series this season.
The music
was very rhythmic and inspired a few audience members to dance
last Saturday in the Gibraltar Room.
Lead
vocalist and percussionist Kuljit Sodhi encouraged the audience
to dance at the start of the concert.
"You
are welcome to dance," said Sodhi. "I will not have you just
sit there."
Sodhi
is an accomplished East Indian folk dancer, choreographer
and dance teacher in addition to being the band leader, so
it is not surprising he encouraged the dancers in the audience.
Galitcha
means tapestry in Punjabi, Hindi and Persian languages, Sodhi
told the audience.
The blending
of sounds and cultures into a type of tapestry is something
the group Galitcha aims for.
Whenever
the group travels to a location they encourage people from
all cultural backgrounds to come in an effort to connect communities,
said Sodhi.
Sodhi
said he was not aware of the large Sikh population in Williams
Lake before the band arrived and he regretted not promoting
the band in the Sikh communities here.
"Whoever
shows up usually enjoys it," said Sodhi.
The songs
are mainly sung in Indian languages like Punjabi, Urdu and
Hindi with explanations in English so a diverse audience can
enjoy them.
North
Indian traditional musical instruments like the tabla, harmonium
and the dhoki are central to the bands music. But they also
play a wide range of Western and world music instruments including
the guitar, flute, saxophone, Gaohu, Erhu and the Taiwanese
Coconut Shell Fiddle.
"We have
a jazz twist and some familiar sounds that makes the music
more accessible for the non-Eastern (Asian) audience," said
Sodhi.
The band
is based in Ottawa and has three core members including Sodhi
who came for the British Colombian tour. Chris MacLean plays
harmonium, guitar and has a beautiful singing voice. Linsey
Wellman plays flute, soprano and alto sax and sings vocals.
Stefan Cihelka came along from Victoria to play tabla for
the group.
The songs
were mainly love songs. There was a combination of original
songs, Bollywood music (songs from Bombay movies) and devotional
songs, said Sodhi.
One love
song told the story an old Romeo and Juliet type Indian legend,
another told the story of a beautiful woman in love and another
about a woman who thinks letters from her lover are sweeter
than candy.
"Most
Indian songs are romantic," said Sodhi.
Galitcha
was on a 19-day tour of British Columbia but Williams Lake
was the farthest north the band travelled.
It was
there first visit to the lakecity and the band said they very
much enjoyed the beautiful drive from Kelowna to Williams
Lake.
"Are
any of you painters?" MacLean asked the audience and few answered
"yes." "If I were a painter, this is the kind of landscape
I would want to paint. All the shapes of the mountains and
beautiful plateaus."
Copyright
2003 tribune
