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1996 Kuljit Sodhi, Galitcha's lead singer, composer and percussionist has been
building an ensemble which integrates music with a strong North Indian footprint
overlaid with influences from western folk and jazz and instrumentation from around
the world. From heartfelt
devotional and love songs, to compelling lively dance tunes, Galitcha (meaning
tapestry) takes audiences on a musical journey from one end of the emotional spectrum
to the other. The songs are mainly sung in Punjabi, Urdu and Hindi with explanations
in English and/or French. Vocalists Kuljit Sodhi also on East Indian dholki
drum and Chris MacLean also on guitar, the accordion-like harmonium, Appalachian
dulcimer and a one-stringed banjo called gopichand; Linsey Wellman on saxophones
and flutes; and Shawn Mativetsky on East Indian tabla drum, dhol (barrel
drum) and percussion; create a culturally diverse Canadian sound. But Galitcha's
performances are not just about the music. There is an inspiring sense of devotion
- to the muse, to each other, to the audience - which is consistently part of
their presence on and off stage.
Based in Ottawa, Canada,
they have performed in concert halls, schools and folk festivals across Canada
and at: - The
Canadian Museum of Civilization
- The
Canadian Tulip Festival
- The
National Capital Canada Day Celebration (2001/02/03)
- The
Black Sheep Inn (Wakefield Quebec)
- The
National Arts Centre (Ottawa)
- The
National Library Auditorium
- Hugh's
Room (Toronto)
- The
Lincoln Center (NY)
- Ontario
Center for the Performing Arts (Oswego NY)
- Place
des Arts (Montréal)
- Festival
de Rabat and International Festival de Tetouan - Morrocco 2002
- Festival
au Désert - Timbouctou Mali - January 2005
- and
have collaborated on stage with artists such as acoustic blues guitarist Harry
Manx, violinist Oliver Schoer and Yves Lambert (la Bottine Souriante).
Galitcha
has also been chosen to perform official mainstage showcases at the following
industry conferences: - The
Ontario Council of Folk Festivals conference (2002)
- The
Ontario Arts Council's Ontario Contact (2002)
- NERFA
(North East Regional Folk Alliance) conference (2003)
- Folk
Alliance Canada (2003)
- Folquébec
(2003)
- Pacific
Contact conference in Vancouver (2004)
- Folk
Alliance Canada showcase at the NA Folk Alliance conference Feb 2005
- ArtStarts
in Schools conference in Vancouver (March 2005)
- Arts
Presenters (APAP) conference (Jan 2006) NYC
- North
American Folk Alliance Conference (Feb 2006) Austin Texas
- La
Bourse RIDEAU (Feb 2006) Quebec City
Galitcha
has received financial support from the Government of Canada through the
Canada Music Fund for promotion and for attendances at NERFA, Contact Ontario,
Pacific Contact, the Vancouver Island MusicFest and the Festival au Désert in
Mali. Assistance was also provided by the Canadian Embassy in Mali for
travel to the Festival au Désert in January 2005 and from the Department of
Foreign Affairs Canada for travel to the US in August 2004. Galitcha's
premiere full-length recording entitled SATRANG, (2002), has done well on radio
across Canada. Their concerts have been recorded live for CBC radio's
Bandwidth, The World in Performance and Global Village and for Radio
Canada. The CD has reached 'top 10' status on world music charts on
stations from Toronto to Victoria. Galitcha was awarded CIUT's (Toronto) 'Porcupine
Award' for Musique du Monde CD of the year (2003). Philly Markowitz,
host of CBC's Roots and Wings, chose SATRANG as a 'Pick of the Year' (2003).
The group has just completed a new CD (their second full length disc) for which
they have received assistance from the Ontario Arts Council and FACTOR.
The recording, entitled Célébration Blé d'inde Celebration, reflects Galitcha's
progress as a group and tells the story of their travels both geographically,
historically and musically. The CD is distributed by Festival Distribution. Continuous
creativity and performance excellence are the primary goals of Galitcha. With
a solid base in Ottawa Canada, Galitcha is steadily working at reaching out to
an ever widening audience - across Canada, in the US and internationally. |
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photo:
Mike Beedell for
personal bios, click on the person's name | |
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Kuljit
Sodhi - lead vocals, percussion
Galitcha's lead singer, composer and tabla and dholki player, Kuljit Sodhi has
extensive experience playing percussion with various musical styles. Born in India,
he emigrated to Montreal at a young age, where he grew up listening to East Indian,
Greek, French Canadian and Latin music. He became an accomplished East Indian
folk dancer, choreographer and dance teacher. As a singer
of devotional songs, Kuljit’s first performances took place in the temples of
his Sikh tradition. His love for the traditional East Indian folk music prompted
him, in 1996, to start his own band, which evolved into what is now called Galitcha.
The original tunes in the Galitcha repertoire are composed by Kuljit. He continues
to develop as a classical Indian singer, studying under the renowned vocalist,
Vinney Bidhe.
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| Shawn
Mativetsky tabla, percussion A versatile percussionist, Shawn
Mativetsky performs regularly in a variety of settings, including Western classical
and contemporary/new music, Indian classical music, and world music. He also composes
and performs music for dance and theatre. He is active in the promotion of the
tabla and North Indian classical music through lectures, workshops, and performances
across Canada, the United States, and England.Shawn teaches tabla and percussion
in Montreal, and is currently on faculty at McGill University. Shawn
Mativetsky is a ganda-band disciple of Pandit Sharda Sahai of the Benares
tabla gharana and has also studied tabla with Bob Becker. Shawn holds a
Master's degree in music from McGill University and has received grants from the
Canada Council for the Arts.  |
Linsey
Wellman - flutes and saxes Linsey received
his Bachelor of Music degree with a concentration in performance in 2001 from
Carleton University, where he studied saxophone with Rob Frayne. He has recorded
with such musicians as Rob Frayne, John Geggie and Ellen McIlwaine, and
played with the likes of Stych Winston, Tom Walsh, Damo Suzuki and Toumani Diabate.
Aside from Galitcha, his current projects include calypso group Kobo Town;
Sun Ra tribute Rakestar Arkestra; Radio - a group which gathers
together three of Ottawa's most audacious but musical improvisers; Toy Box
Orchestra, a quartet mixing drums and percussion, saxes and flutes, kora,
kalimba and viola da gamba; Parade, a free improvising quartet that plays
originals, Sephardic, Arabic, Gypsy and Ornette Coleman tunes with drums, horns,
vibraphone and cello; the occasional flamenco show with (among others) guitarist
Anton Covic and dancer Juliana Pulford; and a duo with drummer Mike Essoudry
with whom he will be recording in the fall. |
Chris MacLean
- vocals, harmonium, guitar, dulcimer, gopichand
With a silvery voice Chris MacLean draws from depths of emotion that transcend
linguistic barriers. Her ability to connect with an audience make her a compelling
addition to the tapestry of Galitcha musicians. Chris studied piano for 10 years
and started playing guitar and writing folk songs at age 13. Her musical experience
spans over 20 years of singing, songwriting and performing folk, bluegrass,
old time and world music. She has performed alongside other artists including
Mae Moore, Beth Ferguson, Terry Tufts and Ian Tamblyn. She has one
album of original songs to her credit, Learn to Be Loved, released
in October 2000. Along with Alise Marlane and Jennifer Noxon, Chris recently recorded
a 6 song EP with their newly formed powerhouse trio Frida's Brow.  |
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