Going the OTHER WAY

Anuradha Kodagoda

“One good thing about music is that when it hits you, you feel no pain.” - Bob Marley.

With these words of Marley the first thing that came to my mind is the extraordinary performance that really hit me a few months ago at the Down Town Pulse Music Festival. A group of young artistes took the audiences through a magical psychedelic journey.

Tyson

By the end of the night I was eager to know about this extraordinary band and when I found that the key performers were from Musicmatters, my doubts faded as they are well known for this type of music matters.

Once again it is time to gear up for some psychedelic, rock music with a Jazz touch as Musicmatters gets ready to host the second edition of Musicmatters Festival 2013 on July 13, from 5.30 pm onwards at the Park Street Mews Colombo.

This year’s Festival will be a combination of fancy Jazz, blues, psychedelic rock, electronic dance music and exceptional Baliphonics – Sri Lankan ritual folk music and many more.

Apart from Sri Lankan artistes, artistes from countries such as New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, the US and Australia are to participate in the festival.

Eshantha Peiris, Isuru Kumarasinghe and Tyson Smith from New Zealand speak to Daily News on their festival experience.

Q: How did you get involved with Musicmatters?

Tyson: I met Sumudi when he was in New Zealand for his higher studies. We learnt together at Christ Church Jazz School. Since then we are in touch. A few months ago he contacted me and invited me to come to Sri Lanka for a month, mainly to participate in the Musicmatters Festival and also to do a few workshops for students of Musicmatters institution. As there’s quite a good relationship now on with Musicmatters and New Zealand musicians, this is a good opportunity for me.

Q: Why is Musicmatters catering to alternative trends of music?

Eshantha: I think it’s the other way around. The musicians who formed Musicmatters happened to be the musicians out of the main stream. Therefore, it’s obvious that when we are organizing a Festival, we play music that we care about. The Musicmatters Festival and all the work connected to Musicmatter fall into the alternative, experimental kind of music.

Q: Your music is different - not familiar but unique. Why?

Isuru

Eshantha: Anywhere in the world alternative trends are not heard regularly. There are many reasons for that. These genres are not radio-friendly, it’s hard to tighten with commercial products. It’s not the kind of music that is promoted by large record labels.. I think that’s why our music is not mainstream and that’s why it’s not familiar. However, that’s not a value judgment. We produce this genre of music because this is what we like.

And we find it meaningful.

Q: What’s your idea about mainstream music in Sri Lanka? And why Musicmatters doesn’t want to fall into that category?

Isuru: There are two kinds of mainstream music trends that we have identified. One is the Sinhala popular culture music and the other one is Western-based pop culture. The Sinhala pop culture arose some kind of an influence with Indian classical music but it’s not really the same.

However, western pop music directly comes from the Western base. At some point we all fall into popular musical trends, one way or the other. However, we think it’s time to change and we need something different without merely following what we have.

Obviously we can’t do the same thing over and over again. That’s the main point that we are doing something different. It’s more than pop music. But at some point we all play popular music somehow.

Eshantha: I think the mainstream music has a place in society. The problem with mainstream music is, it’s quite restrictive. There can be good music but you are expected to play in a certain way, for certain reasons. Sometimes that can be restrictive and we can’t really make big changes and it does not giving the opportunity to make the music that you want.

Non musical trends have minimum commercial pressure and it gives us more freedom to do what we really want to do. Though mainstream music is popular and there’s a market, it’s important to understand that it’s not the only entertainment mode.

Eshantha

Tyson: In New Zealand also the situation is same. If you play only classical music on radio, then classical music would become the mainstream music. Because that’s what people are forced to listen to. People like what they know. Therefore, it’s important in every country to have people who really push the boundaries and challenge the existences and open new avenues in every field of art and we are consciously doing what we are doing.

Q: Is there an audience for this kind of alternative music? And do you think your music is understood by the public?

Eshantha: If I answer the first question, we have gigs every fortnight and have a regular audience who come to listen to the music. If you ask whether the mainstream audience appreciates this kind of music, probably yes. They are continuing to listen to popular music, maybe because they don’t have any other choice. For example at the last Festival, there was a huge crowd and they appreciated our work. I don’t think they are all from the audience who have a better sense of alternative music trends. Most of them were mainstream music listeners.

Can they understand our genre of music, is a tricky question. I don’t think people should really want to have a prior knowledge to understand any kind of music.

Tyson: Most of the times people are used to or forced to listen the same kind of music. In that sense, this type of music would be slightly odd and sounds weird. But I think fundamentally if the music is made sincerely, the energy behind it that can be conveyed through any listener.

Q: What is improvising?

Eshantha: It is I some way a self-explanatory work, making the music on the spot. Most of these groups make up music on the spot within a certain musical language and within a certain musical frame-work. Essentially, it is music created at the moment. So today’s version of the same song, won’t sound the same tomorrow.

Isuru: According to the situation it can be changed. I mean in life everyday doesn’t look or feel the same, it’s different. So it’s the same thing with music. It’s new and it’s all about the moment.

Tyson: It all depends on the feeling at the moment. Ideally what happens is we react to the surroundings and the valuable and essential aspect of improvising being in the present rather than re-creating a story that happens again and again as most of the mainstream bands do. You are giving a room to present the moment, the mood and the environment also has that. Therefore, the audience witnesses a creation rather than a recreation. Obviously it is a different extent altogether.

Sumudi

Q. Though it is a vague question to ask, what does music mean to you?

Tyson: Especially for me when it comes to improvising it’s expressing ultimately me. It’s obviously how you like to spend your time. Some people like to write, some people like to cook and some like to create music.

Music can be meditative and impressive at that moment. Sometimes nothing matters when you play music. I think that’s a good way to live.

Eshantha: I think music is very much a part of being human . It doesn’t matter what kind of music you play, and for me it’s all about manipulating sound to connect with emotions, thoughts and the present moment.

Isuru: Whatever the emotion or expression that it has, I think it is a language trying to talk in a different way. In a sonic way. Music is more like a language for me.