Samir Shukla
By Samir Shukla
Music has always been a uniter. Religious, cultural, or political differences melt away when good music is flowing through the air.
In our contemporary times there is much dissonance, both religious and political, while distrust and prejudice are seemingly getting worse. This is where the music of the recording, Sangat brings a little healing into our world.
Sangat is the debut album from Afghan rabab master Qais Essar and Sikh singer & trumpet player Sonny Singh.
Singh was born and raised in Charlotte, NC and is now based in Brooklyn. He is an original member of the bhangra brass band Red Baraat and a longtime social justice educator and activist.
Trumpet and Rabab are not commonly played together. Here the unique sound of each instruments weave traditional music along with jazz, Afghan and Indian, Punjabi and Sufi influences.
Rabab is an ancient instrument from Afghanistan and when its lilting melodies combine with the modern trumpet, a natural sound emerges. The vocals and lyrics are in Punjabi and Farsi and aim for peace and unity. Folk songs and poetry from both Sufi and Sikh traditions unite and hark back to a time when Muslim musicians traveled with Sikh gurus, spreading teaching and knowledge.
“Sangat is a term Sikhs use to refer to beloved community,” explains Singh. “We often use the term to refer to the congregation in a gurdwara (Sikh house of worship), but to me, sangat is something much broader. My beloved community transcends ethnic, religious and national boundaries.”
Essar adds, “In this climate of increasing attacks on the marginalized, including the communities Sonny and I are a part of, we hope this new music inspires solidarity and unity.”
Sangat’s nine songs mix Indian classical to Afghan instrumental and Sufi music to Punjabi traditional music that gets a little jazzy treatment.
Muslim rabab players were central in Sikh devotional spaces, beginning in the early 16th Century with Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith, who was accompanied on his travels by Bhai Mardana, a Muslim rabab player. Essar and Singh tell this story of a forgotten collaboration in a mini documentary about Sangat, directed by filmmaker Shruti Parekh, which is also out now.
I’ve always loved experimentation in music, where different genres and instruments come together to create something new. Trumpet and rabab may not have met before, but this recording opens new doorways of natural musical brotherhood. Unity, not division, is the groove here.
Samir Shukla is the Editor of Saathee Magazine
Contact: samir@saathee.com
X: @ShuklaWrites
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