Having launched Mukalma series with the first edition featuring Chand Tara Orchestra at the Mad School in Karachi, Ahsan Bari is presently in England. What is he doing there, we asked him?Speaking to Instep from England, Ahsan Bari explains, “There’s a very interesting project called Birmingham Contemporary Music Group (BCMG) and collaborating with the British Council, they generated a very interesting program called Transforming Narratives. We had a collaboration with artist(s) from Bangladesh. We did a solo concert with them. Apart from this, there is a composer from The Czech Republic, with whom we did an orchestral, experimental collaboration with the Chamber Orchestra which happened at Barber Institute of Fine Arts. There was a performance at CBSO, which is Center of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.”
Ahsan adds: “All this is a step towards the collaboration I had earlier spoken about – writing music for just symphony orchestra(s). We are moving towards it slowly.” As for the rest of it, Paanch – The Mixtape is almost done, says Ahsan Bari, which features songs from Chand Tara Orchestra, Jimmy Khan, Natasha Baig, Sounds of Kolachi and Mughal-e-Funk. “I’m back on Friday (July 12) and within the last week of August, we hope to launch it. Simultaneously, we are working on some things for the second Sounds of Kolachi album.”
