DUSHANBE, May 6, 2009, Asia-Plus — At the invitation of the British Embassy in Dushanbe a London-based exiting nine-piece reggae band “Maroon Town” will return to Tajikistan this month.
The band combines break-beat, ska, rap and dub in a high-energy musical fusion. They are going to perform a number of concerts and take part in a series of ”jamming” sessions and master-classes with musicians from Tajikistan. The tour is organized by the British Embassy with support from the Ministry of Culture of Tajikistan. The band will perform in and around Dushanbe.
“Maroon Town’s” inspiring live act has been performed at prestigious venues and festivals all over the world.
According to the British Embassy in Dushanbe, the band has also played in the entire Central Asian ”Stans”, returning to Tajikistan for the second time. This month the band is coming back again to perform new songs and realize their joint initiatives with Tajik musicians. Recently, two Tajik musicians from “Shams” band visited London to meet with “Maroon Town” to practice their joint songs to be performed in Tajikistan. Therefore – this year Tajik music-lovers can enjoy collaborative works of the two nations. Furthermore, during this trip the band is planning to meet with more Tajik musicians developing closer cultural ties between our two nations.
The main concert in Dushanbe will take place on Saturday 16 May 2009 in front of the Opera and Ballet Theatre at 19:00. Just like last year, the concert will be open to the public at no cost.
British Embassy and the Ministry of Culture of Tajikistan hope that this tour becomes traditional and contributes to the development of multinational music collaboration, and also facilitate creative exchanges and integration of music cultures across the region and other parts of the world.
Part of the program is being supported by “Ziyodullo Shahidi International Foundation” which aims at developing cultural dialogue between the UK and Tajikistan.
It is worth noting that “Maroon Town” is known world wide from East to West and from North to South for their great performance of authentic Jamaican ska, Caribbean mento and American jazz and r”n”b with an off-beat rhythm. The name “Maroon Town” is taken from a remote upland community in Jamaica, formed by runaway slaves, the maroons. The multiracial band “Maroon Town” started life in Brixton district of London twenty years ago and since then the band has released four critically acclaimed albums “High And Dry”, “One World”, “New Dimension” and “Don Drummond” to world success.
For one thing the band is multiethnic, with one female member. Seven of the nine honorary maroons are British-born, but they also have South Korean and Australian citizens in the group. The manager and co-founder of the band, Deuan German was born in Spaldings of Welsh/Jamaican parents.
“Maroon Town’s” music, although categorized as reggae, is really an innovative blend of get-up-on-your-feet-and-dance music with noticeable elements of ska, rap, jazz, soul, and funk. Most of their songs are original, and unlike many examples out of North America, their rap-style lyrics are positive (non-violent), uplifting, and intelligible.
