Music band weaves music across three nations

New Delhi: Their compositions remind you of the famous song 'Desert Rose' by Sting, they prefer to call

themselves 'Darb al Harir' or 'Silky Path' and they perform far away from the deserts. An Indian, an Algerian and a French bound together with none other than the language of music attempt to bring together the confluence of the three traditions using a synchronisation of instruments from the three countries. While the coming together of the trio- Nishith (Indian), Manuel (French) and Meryem (Algeria) may itself appear an enigma, what's more surprising is that they haven’t bothered to learn each others' language in all these years of association. "The language of music, is just enough to know if one seeks to establish relationships like the one they share," they say. During a performance at the Alliance Fracaise in the capital recently the group enthralled the audience with their superlative fusion of Indian classical music, Sufi and French vocals. They used a synchronisation of drums, tabla, shahnai, keyboard, sitar, flute, dhol, ektara, guitar and kuitra, A majority of their compositions revolve around traditional Arabic poetry from the 7th to the 11th century using Spanish text and music of Indian origin. The trio mostly attempt to blend the three cultures on stage by combining Indian Arabic and Spanish Flamingo tunes. The story of the band began when Manuel and Nishith first met in 2001 to create "Monsoon", a music video showcasing Manuel's experience in India. In 2002, the duo along with some other fellow musicians, came together to create a musical spectable, 'Alterites' - 'The New Continents'. They were later joined by Meryem, who, says Manuel, was only 19-years-old, when he first met her in Algeria. Speaking about their association, Nishith, a self-taught musician, says "When she (Manuel) first came to India, he had no clue about what Indian classical music is. Likewise, I didn't know a thing about Flamingo. We met through a common friend. He told me that he had some lyrics for which he wanted a composition. I asked him to leave the lyrics with me. And then, when we worked on it, we succeeded." However, it was only last year when Manuel brought Meriyem and Nishith together and 'Darb al Harir' came into existence. Her rendition of Sufi songs got soul through Nishith's music and together, they started receiving appreciation which was reflected in the growing number of people attending their concerts. Working together has also helped them find a lot of commonalities in their respective music forms. "For me, India is a part of the oriental world. Its music is not strange for me" says a beaming Meryem, who says she listens avidly to Bollywood songs even though she doesn't understand the lyrics. "The ragas of Indian classical music are quite similar to Nubas in Arabic music," explains Nishith. Manuel finds an even closer connection to Indian rhythms. "You would be surprised to know that Flamingo has come from India only. There are similar chords used even today in some of the Indian music and Flamingo. Though the names are different, the architecture is the same." While the group's compositions reflect pretty innovative and different fusion, they prefer not using the terminology. "We refrain from calling it a fusion. Music has to be a global sound without any specific definition" says Nishith. The trio also lays much emphasis on individuality. The mantra of co-existence and respecting the differences in each other's music forms holds sacrosanct for them. So, are their explorations of each other only limited to their music? Well, apparently not. "Too spicy", said Manuel and Mereyum when they ate pani-poori with Nishith. "Not quite like our 'jalebis', which Meryem also enjoys in her own country" says Nishith. "What more, they also call them 'jalebis' there". Bureau Report