Friday, August 5, 2011

Philanthropist Izzat Majeed's Sachal Orchestra pulls off unlikely musical coup



The rich strains of eastern music have for centuries wafted across the rooftops of old Lahore. But listen today and you might hear something new: jazzy riffs and a bossa nova beat.

An ensemble of veteran Pakistani musicians have pulled off an unlikely coup with an innovative jazz album which has topped western charts – prompting comparisons with the Buena Vista Social Club which rediscovered a generation of lost Cuban musicians.

The Sachal Studios Orchestra has captured imaginations with a catchy interpretation of Dave Brubeck's Take Five which blends sweeping classical violins with sitars, tablas and other eastern instruments.

The piece has brought praise from jazz greats – Brubeck, now 90, says it is "the most interesting" version of Take Five he's ever heard – and propelled the orchestra's album to the top of the iTunes jazz charts in the US and UK. The album, which includes versions of The Girl from Ipanema, Misty and Desafinado, reached the top 10 in both countries

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