“Music, a myriad of styles and tastes, but it’s all branches on the same tree. One music, no prejudice.”
James Yorkston – Guitar, Nyckelharpa, Vocals
Jon Thorne – Double Bass, Backing Vocals
Suhail Yusuf Khan – Sarangi, Vocals
This is how Jon Thorne, a member of the trio Yorkston/Thorne/Khan, describes the band’s fusion of musical traditions. On their first record, Everything Sacred, the trio perfectly embodies this spirit of open-minded, diverse, and organic sound. James Yorkston (guitar, nyckelharpa, vocals), Jon Thorne (double bass, backing vocals), and Suhail Yusuf Khan (sarangi, vocals) came together as if by chance when really, it was their open and experimental mindsets that let it happen. James Yorkston, a Scottish folk singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, was playing at a music festival when met Suhail Yusuf Khan. Born in Delhi, Khan comes from a long line of sarangi virtuosos and is also steeped in Sufi writings and tradition. The two struck up a conversation about instruments which led to informal jamming followed by Yorkston inviting Khan to accompany him onstage.
Soon after, Yorkston invited Jon Thorne to join them in the studio to record. As a British bass player well-versed in jazz improv, Thorne rounded out the trio’s musical and cultural texture. The idea was to capture their sound on record in a free, fluid, and collaborative way. The resulting album, Everything Sacred, was indeed a cultural masterpiece and solidified the brotherhood. They have now released their second record Neuk Wight Delhi Allstars. (They hail from Neuk, Scotland; The Isle of Wight, England; and New Delhi, India respectively.)
We caught up with the band of brothers as they are getting ready for summer gigs to promote the new record. They took time out to answer some questions for us.
What special qualities or perspectives do each of you bring to the musical mix?
Suhail Yusuf Khan (SYK) – Well, I am a sarangi player and a Hindustani music vocalist. The repertoire I carry is pretty diverse. Being a sarangi player, one ends up getting exposed to varied sub-genres of Indian music—folk, devotional, regional, aesthetic, and film music too. Hence, I bring all those influences and share it YTK.
Jon Thorne – (JT) – From my perspective, I am trying to provide supple support through outlining harmony, playing with sonorous depth and rhythmic propulsion and providing counter melodies and textures that integrate and enhance the others’ performances. Much of this for me comes from a mixture of playing a lot of improvised jazz in my career and also from having performed across a wide musical spectrum, being open, and responding spontaneously.
James has a unique blend of literary skill in his lyrics and punky energy and drive in his songs. He’s capable of great intricacy in his guitar playing also. He writes wonderful ballads too. An arch storyteller. Suhail’s skills as a devotional singer and improviser are extraordinary, as is his ability to take traditional Indian music and blend it seamlessly with anything contemporary that he hears.
James Yorkston – ( JY) – That’s kind of you, Jon. For me, both Suhail and Jon have a vast, studied knowledge of music that I happily lack. I enjoy them talking about scales and modes and such, but I just try to use my ears. Suhail and Jon are both masterful musicians and I feel as though I am exploring a vast, colourful world of unexpected musical delights when I am playing with them.
How do you describe the music you create, this fusion of Scottish/Indian/British, lyrical/mystical traditions? Jon once referred to it as ‘indojazzspangle’. Do you have a name for it?
SYK – Well, you could label it with anything really. Although, for me, it is our signature YTK sound.
JT – “Indojazzspangle” was meant partly in jest, though it does illustrate how difficult it is to label the music that we make in a sound bite. I’m happy to help make the music together and let people call it whatever they want to.
JY – It’s a funny thing, music. Sometimes it’s better just to let people hear it and come to their own conclusions. I think Jon’s description is accurate in that it also suggests the fun we have whilst making it. Plus, I like the idea that Suhail supplies the Indo, Jon supplies the Jazz and me, well, I supply the Spangle…
In what ways are intuition and improvisation integral to your approach?
SYK – Surprisingly they are both interconnected with each other in many ways. If musicians are not able to recognize or judge their intuitions, it becomes extremely difficult for them to take risks while improvising in order to make the improvisation sound creative.
JT – For me intuition and improvisation are essential and part of the foundations of what we do. All of us are listening intently to one another and reacting in the moment, we have the bones of each song/instrumental, but how they are fleshed out is different every night and can change in a moment.
JY – It is important not to care what happens and just to let loose with our playing and see where it goes. We’re not a pop band with people wanting accurate replications of our most recent 3-minute hit. We just get on stage and start exploring. Sometimes we try to trip each other up, but mostly we encourage each other forwards.
You seem to fall within certain contemplative, oral traditions. What role does indigenous storytelling play in the music you make together?
SYK – Certainly. As I mentioned earlier, I am a trained Hindustani musician. In our tradition, musical knowledge is passed on from one generation to the other as an oral language. This age-old methodology of transferring knowledge is called guru-shishya parampara (teacher-student tradition). Hence, stories and thoughts behind tunes play a crucial part in our music making process.
JT – Both James and Suhail draw from and adapt Scottish and Indian traditional music respectively. All three of us bring in original material and we often blend all these elements within a song or instrumental. We never write within intentional parameters though. Literally anything could happen if someone has an idea that works.
JY – I guess my songs normally tell little stories, and the traditional tales I bring in also have strong narratives that have ensured they have been passed through the centuries. The stories provide narrative hooks for us to base the songs around; they suggest emotions and energies. But I don’t consider the stories indigenous, particularly. More so, they reflect the shared human experience.
What draws you to the songs that you cover? How do you choose them? Is it the artist that wrote them, the stories they tell, or is it something else?
SYK – It is a combination of everything that you mentioned. We try a tune during our practice sessions and try playing it at gigs too. If something is working or has potential, we keep trying it and then let the music do its magic.
JT – Each of us brings the sum of our influences with us when we write. James and Suhail usually suggest the cover versions. It may be the artist or the story, often the mood of the lyrics of one cover version will be matched by the mood of another seemingly unrelated song. Suhail has to translate his lyrics for us. It can be like assembling a new picture from entirely separate puzzle pieces. They both constantly introduce me to new things. That’s the fun.
JY – I take influence from everywhere, no strict genre, country or area of music. Anything that interests me, I follow, and sometimes I bring that interest to YTK. If it seems good to me, the guys are kind enough to at least give it a listen or two and usually we attempt the songs or tunes. Mostly the experiments work, but on occasion they don’t.
Can you reflect on your spiritual journey or path as individuals and as a group? Where is the edge for you in your practice?
SYK – I grew up in Delhi, a city where so many different cultures and traditions exist together. Delhi is also known for the Sufi legacy it holds. My mother used to take me to various Sufi shrines in Delhi when I was a kid. The shrines have the divine Sufi music being practiced there, the energy, the faith, the aura and charisma of these places is heavy even today. Hence, those visits and hours of Sufi music sessions at the shrines holds a huge impact on my life as an individual and as a musician too.
JY – I do believe there’s a Something Else—but I don’t believe for one moment any of us—and this includes any holy-man in flashy breeks—know what that Something Else is. Religion just seems to be about ego, power, and control.
JT – My personal spiritual path has ultimately been one of finding my true place among, and seeking connection to, everyone and everything without adhering to any particular belief system. I chose music as it is the best vehicle for this for me. I’m still trying to come to terms with mortality, an ongoing struggle.
I distrust organised religions, especially where money and superstition are involved. I trust my instincts, and I don’t need other people to validate my beliefs. My feeling is that being loving and kind is as religious as I ever really need to get.
We all have our own subjective beliefs in the band, but the music unifies us regardless. There are certainly moments when we are playing together when I feel genuine elevation, a sense of ecstasy, and a deep feeling of connectivity. That’s magical and it’s a joy to experience. That’s the edge, not found in practice, but always sought in performance. Sometimes it happens, but you can’t force it. You just have to stay open to the possibility.
Kari Auerbach is Music Editor at Kosmos Quarterly. She grew up all over the world learning about music and working as a jewelry designer. Currently living in New York City, she is social media director for several recording artists and a jewelry instructor for the New York Institute of Art and Design. She enjoys her many roles as a teacher, artist, mother, mentor, as well as advocating for artists, children, and a better, cleaner world.
Colors In Motion is excited to share a ‘Touchstone’, one of our artworks in motion, called Vessels, as a way to introduce the Kosmos community to our work, and to invite us all to open our eyes, ears and hearts to this experience. Vessels captures the essence of shape, form, and transformation.
It is a human reaction that when we see something we love we want to hold on to it. When it falls or fades away we feel it as a loss, rather than an expansion to include. We can practice ‘unlearning’ grasping and clinging by using the beauty of Colors In Motion to entrain our minds and our nervous systems to accept flow. Flow is a healthy approach to the rapid changes humans are experiencing, and can expand our capacity to be present in every precious moment.
Instruction | Turn off all artificial lighting. Take several slow deep breaths and relax the tension in your body. Find a comfortable viewing position in a quiet place, (headphones preferred), Start the video and expand to full screen size. Experience what comes, maintaining focus on the sounds and images. When your thoughts stray, simply return to your breathing and refocus your attention. Enjoy.
Artists’ Statement:
The theme of this inaugural edition of Kosmos Quarterly- Unlearning Together- is a necessary one. As co-creators of the world around us, we must look to ways we can evolve with all Life: ways that require us to collectively form new pathways and leave old ones that no longer serve us behind.
Colors In Motion develops digital artworks-in-motion with the intention of bringing beauty and centered calm into our busy lives, to public spaces and to our homes. For a decade, we have been working to shift our culture away from assumptions about digital technology, the purpose of art, and factors in our environment that drive us to increased levels of speed, stress, and anxiety.
Our first goal is to challenge the notion that ‘screens’ in our environments are negative influences. Certainly, we have all experienced aggressive news shows and disturbing images coming from televisions in public places and waiting rooms that we could not control. What if these same technologies could provide a sanctuary, inspire delight, and create a sense of simple play for our minds at moments when we need them most- a panoply of slowly-moving colors and shapes with gentle music and soundscapes, to soothe our mind, body, and spirit?
Colors In Motion was born in an interest to help us collectively unlearn limiting assumptions such as these:
We have a limitless capacity to handle ‘messages’. Instead, we acknowledge that we have already reached a tipping point at which too much input from our devices and our screens is causing great emotional and physical stress in our lives.
Technology makes everything faster. Instead, we open ourselves to opportunities where technology can be used to slow us down.
Special skills are needed to ‘play’ with technology. Instead, we revel in dynamic artistic expression that enables us to play, simply by being present.
The experts know what we want to watch. Instead, we realize that just because programming exists does not mean all people enjoy watching it. In many cases, the opposite is true.
Art must be permanent. Instead, we embrace the notion that experiencing art that is constantly changing, trains us to delight in the unexpected and to find comfort and beauty in the shifting and unpredictable moments of our lives.
Christopher Graefe and Linda DeHart are Colors in Motion. Colors in Motion is dedicated to bringing beauty and centered calm to our busy lives by providing cutting-edge environmental display content, which calms people in public spaces, to help forward-looking facilities reach new audiences and clientele.
Explore ColorsInMotion.com to view our installations, experience the transformative qualities and imagine and consider where and how Colors In Motion can enrich your life. For licensing content for large screens in public spaces, contact Colors In Motion at info@colorsinmotion.com.
I wonder if the sun debates dawn
some mornings
not wanting to rise
out of bed
from under the down-feather horizon
if the sky grows tired
of being everywhere at once
adapting to the mood
swings of the weather
if clouds drift off
trying to hold themselves together
make deals with gravity
to loiter a little longer
I wonder if rain is scared
of falling
if it has trouble
letting go
if snow flakes get sick
of being perfect all the time
each one
trying to be one-of-a-kind
I wonder if stars wish
upon themselves before they die
if they need to teach their young
how to shine
I wonder if shadows long
to just-for-once feel the sun
if they get lost in the shuffle
not knowing where they’re from
I wonder if sunrise
and sunset
respect each other
even though they’ve never met
if volcanoes get stressed
if storms have regrets
if compost believes in life
after death
I wonder if breath ever thinks of suicide
if the wind just wants to sit
still sometimes
and watch the world pass by
if smoke was born
knowing how to rise
if rainbows get shy back stage
not sure if their colors match right
I wonder if lightning sets an alarm clock
to know when to crack
if rivers ever stop
and think of turning back
if streams meet the wrong sea
and their whole lives run off-track
I wonder if the snow
wants to be black
if the soil thinks she’s too dark
if butterflies want to cover up their marks
if rocks are self-conscious of their weight
if mountains are insecure of their strength
I wonder if waves get discouraged
crawling up the sand
only to be pulled back again
to where they began
if land feels stepped upon
if sand feels insignificant
if trees need to question their lovers
to know where they stand
if branches waver at the crossroads
unsure of which way to grow
if the leaves understand they’re replaceable
and still dance when the wind blows
I wonder
where the moon goes
when she is in hiding
I want to find her there
and watch the ocean
spin from a distance
listen to her
stir in her sleep
Creativity is the antidote for violence and destruction. Art is our most human expression, our voice to communicate our stories, to challenge injustice and the misrepresentations of mainstream media, to expose harsh realities and engender even more powerful hope, a force to bring diverse peoples together, a tool to rebuild our communities, and a weapon to win this struggle for universal liberation.
– Alixa + Naima
Over the last 15 years, Climbing PoeTree has inspired thousands through their award-winning multimedia performances, soul-stirring spoken, conscious hip hop, world music, visionary artistry, sustainable touring, and community organizing. Co-creators Alixa Garcia and Naima Penniman have independently organized more than 30 national and international tours, taking their work from South Africa to Cuba, the Scotland to Mexico, England to India, and throughout the U.S. including 11,000 miles toured on a bus converted to run on recycled vegetable oil.
In our collective dream, we are racing toward a precipice. Earth’s human children have lost their way, propelled by swift currents of mindlessness and greed. The more we struggle against the current and try to cling to passing debris, the more exhaustion and panic we feel. And yet… and yet, we somehow know another reality is still possible, if only we can shift our awareness and change the story.
As in any dream, we will have to confront our own thought-forms and fears, our habits of mind, in order to wake up. We will have to let go and stop struggling, cohere our thoughts, and will ourselves awake.
Many of us believe a collective awakening is possible and happening right now. We can point to other great awakenings in our Story: the spread of literacy through writing; the rise of philosophies and scientific advances that began in Egypt, Greece, India, Mesopotamia, and China and spread to Europe and the rest of the world; democracy; the abolition of slavery in the US; and freedom struggles the world over. For such great learning to take place, equal unlearning was required.
My generation experienced the 1950s to 1970s as a series of awakenings. Born in the late fifties, I had a deep sense of devotion to my country, based mainly on romanticized stories about the heroism of the founding fathers and early ‘pioneers.’ Like many, as I became aware of the misogyny and racism hard-baked into the cake of my culture and the painful realities of the Vietnam War, my illusions wavered.
I left home at sixteen and sought refuge in the heady atmosphere of feminist intellectuals in the West Village, witnessing encounter groups where women wept describing years of abuse at the hands of fathers, husbands, boyfriends. Many ‘woke up’ and left those debilitating situations. Some men awakened with them. Together with the civil rights, farmworkers, and peace movements, the women’s movement illuminated intersectionalities of oppression, mental health, white privilege, economic disparity, violence, and self-worth. In other words, we had to unlearn what we had been taught: that women and immigrants and people with dark skin and people with disabilities were inferior to wealthy white males of European descent.
It takes tremendous energy to unlearn such a simple lie, and our tears too often are the source of that energy. We have much to unlearn right now from each other’s pain: #MeToo, #MarchForOurLives, #BlackLivesMatter, #lgbtq, #WomensMarch, #Occupy, #Ferguson, #humanrights, #disabilities.
Young people use the word woke to express their raised awareness of the labels and boundaries that divide us and how the media work relentlessly to reinforce those separations. They are keenly attuned to language on multiple scales and hypersensitive to the nuanced relationship between climate, race, and poverty. Non-binary, gender-fluid, multi-ethnic— they reject insincerity and revel in irony. We need them, and if they are ‘entitled’ to anything, it’s to our respect and allyship.
You might notice the word ‘grief’ in these pages. Grief is a natural response to change. Maybe this inaugural edition of Kosmos Quarterly could have struck a more celebratory note. But I think it would have been a false one. Many of us feel torn between two realities: sorrow when we confront the hard truths about suffering on Earth and our part in it; and an aching tenderness, arising love, and new gratitude for the wonders and beauty of nature, the kosmos, and all beings. The challenge is to see that these are not two separate things, but One. We must learn to hold our sorrow and our joy together in our cupped hands.
For the first time in the human experiment, we have the instruments and technologies to see distant galaxies and understand something about our origin. For the first time, we have the scientific tools to look inward at the genetic and atomic structures that underlie all Life, the Code of Creation unwinding its great Story across space and time. For the first time, we understand that Earth is a single great living, breathing ecosystem; humans are but one part. Finally, we are beginning to see that the theories, ideologies, and wars we create are the output of our collective dream—habits of mind.
So that we might unlearn together, there is a way of using this Quarterly called Course View. It is an organized approach to the content across four weeks. You will find many invitations for practice, self-reflection, and sharing. We look forward to your insights.
This is the first Quarterly under my stewardship and a collective effort. Our Editorial Circle is a family that shared deeply, from their hearts, for 100 days—through writing, advising, and numerous conscious conversations. One of those—Grief, Collapse, and Mysticism—is featured. My gratitude for everyone who worked on the Quarterly, especially our designer and webmaster Karen Anderson, is boundless. Of course, the wellspring for Kosmos is our founding editor, Nancy Roof, a lifelong world server and a joyful light in my life. This is her continuation.
Now it is time to open our eyes. May we unlearn the illusion of a separate self so we can see what we truly are. In each other’s shining eyes may we discover the truth of our own awakened nature.
Rhonda Fabian is Editor of Kosmos Quarterly. She is also a founding partner of Immediacy Learning, an educational media company that has created more than 2000 educational programs, impacted 30 million+ learners, and garnered numerous awards. Ms. Fabian is an ordained member in the Order of Interbeing, an international Buddhist community founded by her teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh.
JT – Each of us brings the sum of our influences with us when we write. James and Suhail usually suggest the cover versions. It may be the artist or the story, often the mood of the lyrics of one cover version will be matched by the mood of another seemingly unrelated song. Suhail has to translate his lyrics for us. It can be like assembling a new picture from entirely separate puzzle pieces. They both constantly introduce me to new things. That’s the fun.
