Joler Gaan (Dhaka) Bring the Sound of Water
to Scotland & London 29 July – 11 August 2006

"We are the children of the soil where the river purifies us. We whisper the symphonies of this genre in soft and soothing voices. Dark at night our dreams express themselves on a sailing boat in a land of natural abundance. To us the rivers are like lives flowing away undeterred. And sometimes they are poignant features of our ethnic roots. We sail away in the world of fantasy and imagination. We aspire to know why the bird sings, why the sprinkling of water sounds harmonious. With questions like these churning in our minds we hum the tunes and sing Joler Gaan in unhindered voices."

At the World Sufi Festival Joler Gaan will play the roles of troubadours of old, playing at various locations around the Tramway, including by the flowing water feature in the seclusion of the Tramway’s ‘Hidden Garden’. They will also be appearing in Edinburgh – at the Islamic Art Exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland and at the premier Bangladeshi Restaurant, Britannia Spice where they will treat late-night festival-goers to an evening of Bangladeshi music and songs. They will then head for the tiny island of Easdale (near Oban) to perform and meet local musicians and artists before heading to London Mela on 11 August.

Sat 29 July
National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh Beyond the Palace Walls - Islamic Art from The State Hermitage Museum

Mon 31 Jul -Fri 4 Aug
Workshops – Tramway, Glasgow

Sat 5 & Sun 6 August
World Sufi Festival 2006,Tramway, Glasgow

Tue 8 August
Britannia Spice, Britannia Way, Edinburgh (24.00)


Thu 10 August
Easdale Island Community Hall (18.00)

Sun 11 August
London Mela, Gunnersbury Park, Ealing

BanglaScot Foundation is bringing the Joler Gaan tour and residency to the UK with the assistance of the Schihallion Trust. Melange Network is managing the tour for The World Sufi Festival and BanglaScot.