Making its inaugural appearance in 2015 in the cultural city of Lahore, the Lahore Music Meet, a music symposium (like no other in Pakistan) that includes panel discussions, live music performances, workshops, master-classes and storytelling sessions, is evolving rather nicely into an annual unmissable affair for all those who are remotely curious about music and the power it holds on each of us, collectively as well as on a deeply personal level.
Zain Ali, who plays as a session musician with the likes of Atif Aslam, seen on the LMM platform playing the amazing sounds of his band, Red Blood Cat.
CURTAINRAISER
As Lahore Music Meet gears up to return with its third edition in
March 2017, Instep catches up with co-founder Natasha Noorani to
talk about how the music symposium is shaping up…
Making its inaugural appearance in 2015 in the cultural city of Lahore, the Lahore Music Meet, a music symposium (like no other in Pakistan) that includes panel discussions, live music performances, workshops, master-classes and storytelling sessions, is evolving rather nicely into an annual unmissable affair for all those who are remotely curious about music and the power it holds on each of us, collectively as well as on a deeply personal level.
As the announcement of the third edition - which is scheduled to take place in Lahore next year at the Alhamra Art Centre on the 11th and 12th March 2017 - was made earlier this week, Instep caught up with co-founder Natasha Noorani who spoke about the ideology behind LMM and how the upcoming two-day event is shaping up.
Tollcrane is the solo project of Talha Asim Wynne, seen here with Daniel Arthur Panjwaneey who also makes delicious music under the alias of Alien Panda Jury. Both artists also make up the line-up of Pakistan's thrilling shoegaze group, //orangenoise.
But before that, as we look briefly at the first two editions, what’s obvious is that the focus, fortunately, has not been on strictly assembling a room only filled with certain popular mainstream musicians. Instead this LMM team, consisting of founders Natasha Noorani, Zahra Paracha, Noor Habib and Creative Director, Ayesha Haroon alongside the core team of LMM directors, takes pride in showcasing a truly diverse and inclusive line-up that takes note of the music scene in entirety, a place where artists can come together and no one is left behind.
The last two editions have seen participation from over 100 artists who represent the music scene with a lot of heart such as Ali Zafar, Noori, Red Blood Cat, Ali Suhail, Jamal Rahman (True Brew Records), Takatak, Sikandar Ka Mandar, Keeray Makoray, Naseer & Shahab, Shahzad Noor of Shorbanoor, Tollcrane, Shamoon Ismail, Faris Shafi, Sara Haider, Zohaib Kazi, Mai Dhai, Attaullah Khan Esakhelvi, Tina Sani and many more.
The learnings from LMM are also priceless. In 2016, Ahsan Bari (Sounds of Kolachi) spoke about the art of music composition while Sikandar Mufti spoke about the nature and origins of percussion, and its utility in music; there were several such informative sessions.
When asked, Zohaib Kazi, the creator of the mammoth book-album Ismail Ka Urdu Sheher, told Instep that the LMM “is a fantastic way to bridge barriers between the artists and audience, giving both entities an opportunity to share, experience and acknowledge each other’s presence.”
Lahore Music Meet co-founder Natasha Noorani
As we approach the upcoming third edition, it is palpable from my conversation with Natasha Noorani that the programming bill for the two-day event is not being put together in a haphazard, arbitrary manner. Aside from shifting the musical event to March from April to avoid melting away in belligerent heat, Noorani explained that the event is in the midst of restructuring. “We’re restructuring a bit; we’re paying attention to not just outdoor performances and panel discussions - though they will also feature - but also on practical education. So aside from live performances, LMM will feature a number of workshops, master-classes and storytelling sessions.”
The aim, Noorani explained, is not only to diversify but to operate sans any egos and keep an open-door policy as well as allow attendees a chance to acquire skills through specific sessions with industry experts.
With the two co-founders, in their early twenties, they are just as eager to learn and hope to create a “magical space” where people including artists can learn from each other’s ideas. “The idea is for artists to meet other artists,” explained Noorani. The cliques that can tear up an industry are avoided at this platform where young aspiring names are encouraged to speak up as well as interact with others.
The symposium, indie in its spirit, will also give new talent a chance to showcase its verve. And unlike other similar cultural events and festivals where topics can get redundant after a few years of existence, the LMM team is making sure that the festival maintains vibrancy by specifically adding topics that have been unexplored or not fully explored.
Learning from the first two editions, LMM is evolving with a strong belief in the art of creative collaboration. This means terms are not dictated to artists about what they can and can’t say or do or sing; the inclusion of any artists, therefore, is much more collaboratory and intimate in nature.
“We’re very relaxed about how we approach artists,” concluded Noorani. “We’re aware that we can’t nor should we impose ideas on artists or pigeonhole them. So we reach out to them and share our ideas but ask them ‘what would you like to do’ and so on.”
Photography by Iman & Nadir
