Music of the World

Presenting our series of “Music of the World” sharing the work and interviews with artists from all over the world. Music has no boundary, touching all of us and bringing us together.

FindingTheVoices, A talk show by Monica Ingudam.

Music of the world 008: Freedom is a state of mind

/ Monica Ingudam / Leave a comment
Freedom
Chords of Truth
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA
Styles: Folk/Americana
Chords of Truth brings songs with simple lyrics but such depth which will make you think as you want to hum along. This song Freedom will definitely make you think about Freedom. Everyone talks about freedom. Everyone wants freedom. Everyone is fighting about freedom. What is freedom to you?  Chords of truth sings about freedom with a perfect blend of music.
…
Freedom is Freedom is Freedom is oh ya Freedom is undefined
No one can tell you what it means
because it’s a state of mind
…
Listening to this song back to back, I think of Freedom.
Even when you are bonded physically in some situation of your life, you could be free. It’s a state of mind. Your physical freedom could be limited but not your mental freedom. And the physical aspect is only transient. Isn’t it? If freedom is a state of mind, what are you fighting for?

The other song which caught me is the song ““Wonder”

…

I wonder bout the people who can’t seem to see
through their preconceptions that they cling to for life and death
even if it conflicts with what they know deep down to be reasonable
for our progress, for our culture, for our future

…

It makes me think about Manipur, my hometown filled with conflicts, anger and hatred, such hatred where the people continue fighting with each other showing their power within what they could control. But deep down I am sure when darkness strikes and insomnia seizes you, you do think about the daily wage worker, the old women vendors who had to leave the vegetables they grew over time, fleeing with fear and chaos created, the laborers and the whole lot of people who suffers at the cost of the Bandh you have enforced for your protest, to get justice. And then you convince yourself that you are doing it for our progress, for our culture, for our future. You want to be reasonable but are you?

 

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

 

 

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Music of the world 007: Going to dark places with Chris Wirsig’s instrumental music

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We have had times where we delve in dark moments in life leaving us in a trance taking us to the darkest place. A dark place which sucks your mind and body with such force, making it difficult to get out. We have also gone through times where we are stuck with images of our dreams and nightmares haunting us. We know it’s not real but it felt so real leaving us gripping with fear, with a state of restlessness and confusion. And I identify such moments expressed by the instrumental music collection “13 Crystal Skulls” of Chris Wirsig. Listening to his music, even having a good cry out and dealing with the darkness may be a good way to wake up from the trance and walk out of that phase.

Composer Chris Wirsig found inspiration in the mystery of the 13 Crystal Skulls that have been captivating people’s imagination for over 100 years, from Indiana Jones to conspiracy theorists. With this in mind he created 13 instrumental songs, delving into mysterious atmospheres and dark places. I like all the numbers in the collection but my favorite is “Overture” and “The Shaman’s Lore” 

And on the other hand, it is people like Chris Wirsig which gives a movie or a video game a life synching you with the ambience with the background instrumental music.

His latest works can be seen in the short mystery movie “20 Matches”.

His latest works include music for the acclaimed Top Ten iPad game “Alien Tribe 2”

Band/Artist: Chris Wirsig / no:carrier
Location: Los Angeles
Styles: Dark Ambient, Ambient, Electronica, Soundtrack

A little bit about Chris Wirsig:  He studied audio engineering at Munich’s SAE Technology College and has more than 15 years experience in music production. He is into writing songs and making music for computer demos and commercial games. He started the acclaimed Electro Noire band no:carrier and the Electronica/Chill-Out project Virtual Conformity. He enjoyed classical training on piano and saxophone.

For Full streaming check out crystalskulls.chriswirsig.com

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

 

 

Music of the world 006: An interview with Tomas Doncker, musician from New York, USA.

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Location: New York, USA.
Styles: Blues/Global SoulAlbum Release: The Mess We Made

“It all started on The day of the Charleston Massacre.  The heinous events which occurred on June 17, 2015 pushed me over the edge.  I was overwhelmed with rage, hatred, confusion and disillusionment.  I had no place to put these feelings.  I had no idea how to process them.  In a selfish attempt to maintain my own sanity I did the only thing I could do — write about it. By Sunday, June 21, I had written 4 new songs and within ten days I had recorded the 8 songs that would become  The Mess We Made.”

He shared about the power of music and believe that Music is the weapon of the future. When the music is good, people are drawn to the music and the message is heard. He believes that our culture is supposed to reflect the time we live in but where are all the artist ? Why aren’t they commenting on our time ?
“There are good things about America and there are bad things about America as it is in any other place. America is a very racist place. Why would anyone want to go to a church and shoot a bunch of old people praying ? That is evil, just evil. The news of Charleston massacre was so terrible that I was sick, physically sick, afraid, upset and wrote these songs to take the poison out of my system. It was pure self therapy and music saved me. “
We also spoke on piracy and how nobody pays for music anymore, on Technology giving us access to information or disinformation filling people’s mind with hatred.
Presenting an interview with Tomas Doncker, musician from New York, USA.

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charleston_church_shooting

http://www.tomasdoncker.net

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

Music of the world 005: “Who am I?” Joel Ansett

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Joel Ansett  , singer and songwriter based in Denver wrote that the songs in his debut album “The NATURE OF US” are all about identity — “Who am I?” and that intrigued me to click through his songs. Don’t we all, at some point in our life search for identity and ask “Who am I?”

Joel Ansett ‘s song “She Walks in Beauty” is a tribute to his mother who has bravely battled breast cancer twice and his lyrics expressed the journey of pain but with strength so well “Oh an army rushes in to tear her flesh, to rob her strength and song, To dull her cheeks and take her hair, but she who walks in beauty walks on”

Going through his song, I was caught by his song “Already in Love” a song I can listen back to back and definitely adding in my playlist. Love the lyrics and the calmness.

What is not to love with a lyrics like this, makes one reflect on Love, unconditional love where one is accepted as is, in a world where you have to fight and stand for who you are, to retain your identity.

…

Even if you change I’ll still be loving on you

I’m in love with who you will be too

Even if there’s a past that you’re too afraid to show

Or a little something secret you don’t want me to know

Take your fears, take your shame, and all your scars

Watch them fade away inside the comfort of your home in my heart

So no matter what you’ve done

And no matter what you do

Feel the healing of a love that’s never leaving you

I’m already in love, with you

Already made you mine,

Never gonna leave your side

I’m already in love, with you.

…

I love his collection of songs, calm and soothing and would love to watch his live performance. Here is a link of my favorite song “Already in Love” in his album “The NATURE OF US”.

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

 

Music of the world 004: An interview with Jim Wellman from England “Dawn To Dusk”

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Artist: Jim Wellman
Location: East Sussex, England
Styles: Jazz, Funk, Disco, Acid Jazz, Soul
Album Release: Dawn To Dusk : Feb 2016
The album is social commentary, but viewed through perspectives of human psychological evolution, and analysis of mass communication and propaganda. The core of the work is the understanding that Man lives in a world of amazing technological development, but is still encumbered with medieval forms of government by representatives who serve mainly the interests of the elite. Jim uses the mechanisms of human evolution to show how this is wrong for humanity, and instead advocates new forms of direct democracy and openness through an uncensored internet.
When I read about the background of Jim Wellman’s album, I wanted to hear more on his inspiration and thoughts on why and how he came up with the Album “Dawn to Dusk”. He shared very interesting details in this interview and spoke about why it’s important for everyone, particularly celebrity to speak up and voice opinions on social or political topics, and step up as a citizen. Also we spoke about the need for change and reforms to include the people in the decision making process of the system, as opposed to only during the election time.
I found the usage of dialogues in his songs different and interesting. I love the beats in the song “Let the People Rule Ya” and found it very catchy. “Happy song” is one of my favorite in his collection, featured at the end of this video, a song which is a plea for popular celebrity to express opinions. Do check out his upcoming release of the Album “Dawn To Dusk”.

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

 

 

Music of the world 003: Jamaican Reggae artist Nesbeth “My Dream”

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Reggae is a music genre originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. It’s always interesting to learn about music in different parts of the world. I love the beat, rhythm and musical characteristics of Reggae being played 4/4 times.

For instance in Nasbeth’s song, Joy in the morning, which is one of my favorite amongst his collection, he goes:

“It’s gonna be joy in the morning,

It’s gonna be joy in the morning,

It’s gonna be joy in the morning,

It’s gonna be joy in the morning”

and that captures the whole essence of the song and I can sing along that part at least.

The other aspect of reggae which is captured very well in Nesbeth’s song “My Dream” is the beat and rhythm of the music, a music which will make your body sway as you listen. It’s interesting to hear the child’s version of My Dream in his soundcloud list.

Listening to “My Dream, My Dream, My Dream, My Dream” reaffirms that my dream is important and I need to pursue my dream. Music is a medium which can get you through many facets of emotions, giving you the strength to bear low phase or heighten your spirits to the peak.

Yes, I had to look up on Nesbeth’s background, he grew up in the urban Arnett Gardens neighborhood of West Kingston on the island of Jamaica, referred to as “The Concrete Jungle” because of high crime rates and widespread economic hardship. It’s interesting to note that throughout his childhood, music was the sun in his life, and his curiosity about using it to communicate and to offer comfort to himself and others grew as he began to experiment with recording and discover his own voice. And this is reflected in his song Taste Victory which shows the trainings, hard work, failures before the taste of Victory, a beautiful way of expressing the way to tasting Victory.

Here is the link to listen to his songs at  https://soundcloud.com/nesbeth-greg

Here is the video of his song Taste Victory

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series

 

 

Music of the world 002: Chloe Baker ‘s haunting voice in her song “Love Won’t Make You Cry”

/ Monica Ingudam / Leave a comment

“Love won’t tear you down, call you names or laugh at your pain
Love won’t sacrifice your hopes and dreams
For heartache and shame
Love won’t beat you or burn you or hang out to dry…
Love won’t make you cry”

It’s from a song by Chloe Baker which I have been listening back to back from yesterday. Every time I listen to her hauntingly beautiful voice, I can feel her words and absorb the meaning even deeper. I love the lyrics and her voice.

I always look up the details of the artist when I love the work, to get to know a bit about the artist. Chloe Baker is a New Jersey-based singer and songwriter. I believe that there is always somebody who is behind you, backing your dreams, who inspired you to step up that extra step,  catches you when you fall. It’s interesting to note that Chloe Baker grew up in a home filled with music and she worked very closely with her father to record and produce her music. It must be a beautiful feeling to work together with her father creating beautiful memories which will last forever. Staying across countries, I miss my father very much. He has always been there and I treasure my memories with him including the arguments and tears. Can’t help thinking if they fought and argued while they worked together, just like I do with my father.

I love her song “Love won’t make you cry” so much that I looked up and watched all her other songs. The song “The Rope” was written and sung based on her feelings about the suicide of a distant cousin. I definitely see a lot of talent in her as a young singer and songwriter. She believes in her words and songs, which can be felt bringing the instant connection to her words and voice.

 

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.

 

Music of the world 001: Tomas Doncker protesting for the Charleston Massacre through his music

/ Monica Ingudam / Leave a comment

When I read about the rage, hatred, confusion and disillusionment Tomas Doncker shared over the Charleston Massacre, and how he has put his feelings into the songs he wrote and made for his Album “The Mess we made”, I had to look up and listen.

For those who don’t know about the Charleston Massacre, on June 17, 2015, a 21-year-old white man opened fired on a group of people inside the  Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States. The shooter was quoted to have said “I have to do it. You rape our women and you’re taking over our country. And you have to go.” 9 people died, all African-American, out of which 6 were women and 3 were men, killed by multiple gunshots fired at close range. This was clearly a hate crime of racism.

Looking up on Tomas Doncker’s biography, it’s interesting to note that his musical vision is global. Starting from New York, his work went across Japan, China as a singer, songwriter and producer.

Most recently, I was asked by a young student from my native place Manipur on how effective are music sung for a cause. Coming from a conflicted place and seeing different kind of protests leading to more violence, I would say protesting via music is a very peaceful form of protest. The Album “The Mess We Made” is Tomas Doncker’s  way of protesting for the Charleston Massacre. It’s a strong way of non violent protest sharing his rage, hatred, confusion, disillusionment of this hate crime of racism. Music have no boundary and will travel across the globe like his music has reach me. “Time will tell” is my favorite amongst  his Album “The Mess We Made”.

And we stick together fighting racism and hatred.

Here is the link to listen to “The Mess We Made”

Album trailer for “The Mess We Made”

 

MI_S03_withlogoBorn and raised in the violence-torn landscape of the Indian state
Manipur, I have a vision to promote and spread inspiring, empowering, educative & entertaining stories. I believe we can do this together by finding the voices, voices which needs to be heard and shared, voices of the people, people all over the world. I believe that these voices will bring a change and connect all of us. Presenting the voices in our series of “Music of the World” sharing music and the thoughts of the artist from all over the world. Contact us to be a part of this series.