VOA标准英语2011--Music Diva Kiran Ahluwalia Offers Global Common Ground

Music Diva Kiran Ahluwalia Offers Global Common Ground

 

The India-born Canadian singer Kiran Ahluwalia is known for her ability to combine a wide range of styles in single compositions - from the Indian and Pakistani “ghazals” of her girlhood, to Celtic folk music, Portuguese¹ Fado and, most recently, the traditional hand clapping and blues²-inspired music of the Tuareg tribes of West Africa.

“It’s not that I intended to come here,
but the path has led me here.
Laced with dust though I am,
yet please consider that for years
I have been wandering dusty paths…”

Those are lyrics³ to the ghazal “Yeh Nahin.” It's Punjabi for “Wandering Dusty Paths,” composed by Kiran Ahluwalia. Born in India, raised in Canada, now living in New York and touring the world with her band, Ahluwalia’s own path has been wandering ever since she first heard these traditional love songs as a girl.

“Even though the words were beyond the comprehension of a 10 year old, I was just mesmerized⁴ by the music," says Ahluwalia, in the apartment overlooking Harlem she shares with her husband, fellow musician and producer Rez Abassi.

Ahluwlia is known for her daring collaborations with musicians from far flung corners of the globe. In her new CD, “Aam Zameen: Common Ground,” she teams up with Tinariwen, a Tuareg desert blues band from Mali, as well as traditional Tuareg musicians and a Gambian “ritti” player.

Kiran Ahluwalia honors the traditions of others, creating a musical world where geographic6 boundaries don't apply.

When Ahluwalia and the Tuareg musicians met in France to record, they often had to resort to hand gestures to convey ideas. She says they experimented, rehearsed, gesticulated and laughed together for hours before the recording⁷ session began.

“So when I walked into that Paris studio all of my energy pods were open, and oh my God, at the end of that day like 20 people had jumped inside of me,” she says. “We just found a completely instant connection after we started singing."

That kinship can be heard in “Musst Musst" the CD’s signature song. Ahluwalia knew it was a risk for her mostly Indian musicians to play a traditional Sufi Muslim song from Pakistan with Tuaregs in a Saharan blues style. But South Asians and Tuaregs both combine hand clapping and call and response in their traditions, and somehow it worked.

“I think we all succeeded in integrating our different backgrounds so well, it is one unit. There was no dividing line.”

While the musical styles that Ahluwalia explores are rooted in particular cultures, emotions are universal. For example, even though she spoke⁸ no Portuguese, she immediately recognized the sense of love and longing⁹ that are the hallmarks of the Portuguese “Fado” and sought out a partnership¹⁰ with Fado instrumentalists that resulted in her 2007 “Wanderlust” CD.

“I almost never know the words when I am falling in love with a different type of music,” says the singer. “It’s really everything else in the music: the feeling of the phrases, the melody, the rhythm, and the mood it creates… that is touching¹¹ me.”

Sometimes, the moods in Ahluwalia’s collaborations are joyful¹², as in “Jhanjra,” a traditional Punjabi folk-song she recorded with the Celtic fiddler Natalie MacMaster. At other times, she has collaborated¹³ with traditional Afghani musicians and Inuit “throat singers.”

Ahluwalia says that she is drawn¹⁴ to collaboration⁵ because as an India-born woman raised in Canada, “I myself am a collaboration. Culturally and musically, those two influences are very much within me and my own identity. On the other hand, I’m a citizen of the world. And the entire world is there for me to be influenced by.”

Just where Ahluwalia’s travels will take her after her current tour is anyone’s guess. However, one thing is certain: while remaining rooted in her own musical heritage, she will continue to honor the traditions of others to create a musical world where geographic boundaries need not apply.

1 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

2 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

3 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

4 mesmerized   

v.使入迷( mesmerize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The country girl stood by the road, mesmerized at the speed of cars racing past. 村姑站在路旁被疾驶而过的一辆辆车迷住了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• My 14-year-old daughter was mesmerized by the movie Titanic. 我14岁的女儿完全被电影《泰坦尼克号》迷住了。 来自互联网

5 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

6 geographic   

adj.地理学的，地理的

参考例句：

• The city's success owes much to its geographic position. 这座城市的成功很大程度上归功于它的地理位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Environmental problems pay no heed to these geographic lines. 环境问题并不理会这些地理界限。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

7 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

10 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

11 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

12 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

13 collaborated   

合作( collaborate的过去式和过去分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• We have collaborated on many projects over the years. 这些年来我们合作搞了许多项目。
• We have collaborated closely with the university on this project. 我们与大学在这个专案上紧密合作。

14 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。