Last Night: Master Musicians of Jajouka at Neumos
The Master Musicians of Jajouka; photo by Cherie Nutting
Some of you may remember that the Master Musicians of Jajouka scheduled a tour date out here several months ago (pre-Obama, of course) that got canceled because the American government didn't feel like giving them visas. So I was glad to see that they managed to make it here this time without any guff from our fearless leaders.
A local band called Titanium Sporkestra opened for the Master Musicians. In most bands, the drummer usually hangs out in the back, holding up a song without much fanfare, but these guys are all drums, all the time, and the results were decidedly favorable. We walked in to see about eight people wearing their drums (and silver Kanye glasses), standing in the center of Neumos, hitting the skins like fiends and dancing around while the audience stood in a circle around them and watched. It was pretty excellent. If I see these guys on any bills in the future, I'll alert you.
The Master Musicians of Jajouka, however, were the real treat; I am by no means an expert in Moroccan music, and I doubt many of the hippies dancing around at the show were, either, but the music's hypnotic power doesn't require a degree in ethnomusicology to enjoy. The brassy cacophony of the ghaita (a type of horn) and the lira (a flute) easily filled the room, which was also completely physically occupied. If not sold out, it was close. People danced with their eyes closed, frantically, as if in a trance. Others simply stood and watched, jaws agape.
My boyfriend thought that the band would've been better in a place where we could've sat and really listened, but I disagree; most people, including myself, wanted to groove. In fact, I felt downright compelled to dance. Like I didn't have a choice. Like I was a cobra being charmed out of a basket, or some poor sap running helplessly along behind the Pied Piper, except I was happy to submit to the urge. Even Bachir Attar (the band leader) wanted us to dance; best of all, he got up and did a little strutting himself in front of the other seven musicians, all of whom wore white turbans and long green robes.
When I got home, I did some more reading and found that the Master Musicians of Jajouka are actually all family members, and their music has been passed down for generations. The history is long; I'd retell it here, but I think you'd be better off going to their website and reading about it.
1 comment(s)
Torben Holleufer says:
The Master Musicians of Jajouka are not all family members. They probably used to be, but nowadays they have a few musicians who are from outside. But have played with them forever and can thus be regarded as brothers.
Posted On: Sunday, Feb. 22 2009 @ 11:31AM