Folk it Mediterranean concentrates on the wonderful wealth of music from this region
The Breton band Startijenn celebrated their fifteenth anniversary in 2023, and not just with a modest party: they dusted off old compositions and created new arrangements, performed with a number of guest musicians. This was all done live during a tour at the end of 2012 and beginning of 2013. They recorded seven performances and a selection was released on CD.
True, El -Taqa doesn’t sound very Breton, which is because it refers to the Algerian singer-rapper Sofiane Saïdi. He was responsible for the lyrics accompanying the songs of the Bretons, which usually are instrumental. His passionate reciting and singing adds a new dimension to the lively performance of the band. Or is it the other way around? The powerful, energetic sounds of a Breton quintet form the perfect background to the declaimed and temperamental sustained notes, common in Algerian music.
In short: Mediterranean and Breton cross-over in top form!
Startijenn & Sofiane Saïdi – Al Ta Qa – Paker Prod 012
1a. Mwalfa (An Dro) (Konogan An Habask/Sofiane Saïdi)
1b. Istakhbar (Sofiane Saïdi)
1c. Pakit Holl Sidi Bel Abbès (Ront Sant-Visant) (Tangi le Gall-Carré/Sofiane Saïdi)
2a. Ketrou Lefkar (Kelc`h Chaabi) (Tangi le Gall-Carré/Sofiane Saïdi)
2b. Hir ! (Ton Plinn) (Tangi le Gall-Carré/Sofiane Saïdi)
3a. Noz Ar Zapaj (Vals) (Tangi le Gall-Carré)
3b. Gamil El-Taqa (Sofiane Saïdi)
3c. Droug-Red (Ront Sant-Visant) (Tangi le Gall-Carré/Youenn Roue/Sofiane Saïdi)
4. Gasbah El-Taqa (Allaoui) (Sofiane Saïdi/Tangi le Gall-Carré)
