A journey with music
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Renowned Scottish violinist Anne Wood will tell the incredible story of her journey from the Highlands to the Himalayas, to meet her father for the first time, when a new tour stops off in Crieff tonight.
Conceived as a conversation between Scottish and South-asian music, ‘When Mountains Meet’ is set to captivate the audience at Strathearn Arts on Friday, May 17.
Anne grew up in Scourie, Sutherland and Edinburgh in the 1970s, the only child of a single mother who never knew her Pakistani father.
In her early twenties she found the father she had never met – and who had no idea that she existed – when she visited Karachi and experienced generosity and cultural richness.
However, she also discovered that being a professional musician and an illegitimate woman accorded her little status in Pakistan.
Through story, song, original music and immersion in food, textiles and geography, ‘When Mountains Meet’ explores contemporary Scottish/pakistani identity.
The show features a vibrant live score combining alap, raag, reel and Strathspey music, as well as English, Gaelic and Hindustani vocals.
Anne explained: “My mother is Scottish. My father was Pakistani. In my early twenties I found the father I’d never met … but I was taboo in a culture to which I longed to belong.”
She continued: “‘When Mountains Meet’ grew out of my wish to share the incredible journey I had getting to know my dad and his country after I traced him when I was in my twenties. He didn’t know I had been born but replied quickly to my tentative letter introducing myself, completely accepting me into his life as we developed a fiery but loving father-daughter relationship.
“Over the past 30 years there were physical journeys between Scotland to Pakistan but also powerful emotional journeys on both sides, sometimes deeply challenging and uncomfortable but which resulted with connection and a sense of belonging, and ultimately with an ongoing connection with my half-brothers.
“The show’s inspiration came from my search for identity, belonging and connection with a land very different to my own, and a father I had never met but who never felt like a stranger.
“It draws from my own connection to two diverse wild mountain landscapes – where my grandparents lived, and where I played as an only child, in north-west Sutherland and the mountainous regions in northern Pakistan, where I yearned to visit while living in Karachi.”
Featuring new music composed by Anne, the show is co-directed by Kath Burlinson and Niloo-far Khan with Mary Macmaster on harp, Rick Wilson on percussion and Rakae Jamil on sitar. The cast of storytellers is Iman Aktar, Hassan Javed and Jamie Zubari.
Anne went on:” Over 30 years later I felt ready to share this story and, with co-director Kath, gathered a wonderful team.
“We had my journals from my first trip to Pakistan that gave us a rich source material from my perspective.
“One of my father’s sons, my half-brother, generously provided us with the perspective from the family’s side, enabling us to offer different sides to the story. His input developed as we made the show, allowing me to gain a deeper and richer insight into my own story.
“I have gathered the band of my dreams to play the music I composed for the show – outstanding musicians from Pakistan and Scotland, India and the UK.”
The show is produced by The Authentic Artist Collective and KT Producing and an album is available on CD and digitally.
The evening at the Comrie Street venue starts at 7.30pm.
Tickets, priced at £12.75 or £8.50, are available from www.strathearnarts.org or by calling 01764 655556.
• Pic: Robin Mitchell.