Stonehenge
Ancient Rhythm Formation, a music formation occasionally reborn
from time to time, whose „hard core” of a few members is always
completed with various different guest artists and soloists, permanently
accompanies the drum celebrations along since March 2005 organized
by „Szintezis” (means Synthesis) Society in Hungary. The base
of their musically exotic sound (usually acoustic, ancient, folkish,
tribal – maybe you can say „neofolk” as style) is given by the
consonance of various percussion instruments and didgeridoo, that
is also coloured in each concert, on each track by several different
other instruments. This is one of those creative circles have
been beginning to blossom out of the productive breeding ground
collected by the above-mentioned public society for years. Until
now, the group has exclusively assembled together only for a few
special concerts, and the most of all movements are some improvisation
born alive on stage, mirroring back the actual influence of scene
and time; starting from a simple common theme, then attaining
full growth spontaneously and irreproducibly. Unification, and
entitling, editing them into a coherent album – all of this was
subsequently done.
Stonehenge played live first at 20th March 2005, in the equinoctial
day Spring Drum Celebration, Budapest (also 10th September, PeCsa).
The very first official publishing of their music was, in 2006,
the only one but extra long (more than 24 minutes) video track
Autumn Feast on Kiyo-Kito Taiko’s promotional Caleidoscope
DVD (as it was played in the same concert in 2006 autumn). Next
year, in 2007, the first own Stonehenge CD was done: Ice Just
Cracked – a nine track live collection of their best.
Its
actual roots and organic antecedents, however, had already pre-existed
long before: during all the preceding years we permanently cudgelled
our brains partly about any kind of ritual music less or more
of somewhat buddhistical nature; and partly we cultivated very
good friendship with the Turunga didgerido circle – also active
for some years before. This contact did not only mean any passive
relation, but also manifested itself in a series of common performances
(for example at the DOB-ban a szív 1-2-3. exotic rhythm
festivals in 2003, 2004 and 2005 at the Petofi Hall, or the Synthesis
Society’s and the Shaman Circle’s miscellaneous other self-made
organizations etc.). The Turunga circle worked similarly to the
circles of the Synthesis in such a respect that its mostly young
and enthusiastic, „civil” members collected together coming out
of a previous, larger friendly company, also hand-making their
instruments for themselves, and practising and training together
at their own will, too (the only difference was the instrument
itself: what is a shaman drum for us, rather was the didgeridoo
to them). And so thus those few guest artists of ours derived
from here, with whom we successfully created this alloy called
Stonehenge then. The social composition of the Turunga circle
neither remained constant, with their members always coming and
going, changing, too; another few years later also formed a new
band in the name of Gudanjabro.
Also
during those preceding years we were on friendly terms with Andras
Laar, who played together with his son David Laar (who is a jazz-drummer)
in a band called Fire Stream (or „Tuzforras”). Our co-operation
with him is very old: after he had occasionally taken part in
our shaman drum circle (similarly to such other helpers like Istvan
Somogyi and Zoltan Solyomfi-Nagy) from the very beginning (since
1997), and for example in the second Spring Drum Celebration (in
2002) the Kiyo-Kito Taiko and the Fire Stream already performanced
together with the debut of Andras’ Power Song, Andras
– in the most diverse formations – was present at almost every
Pataky and PeCsa concert in the first years. He played guitar,
jinglers or fairy flute – or sang. A forever returning actor on
the Synthesis events, too. (Already in his previous interesting
bands with not translatable special names – Tuzforras (that was
„Fire Stream” as translated above), Tuzbalna, Tantra Magyar, Tunder
Tantra etc. – and the former Javas Music and Fairy Music with
his friends they formed out a lot of meditative and/or „neofolk”
stylistical marks, which were then being built into this shaping
alloy, too.) It was a matter of course that he would be in Stonehenge,
too… And it happened so: he become an important pillar of the
group. The younger Laar – David – had already been a member of
the Kiyo-Kito, and was present mainly in this capacity, together
with a few further members of the taiko group (sometimes also
as a jazz-drummer besides). David’s part in the story was the
match-making between taiko and didgeridoo sound – that’s indeed
a particular key-role, speaking of the two most important and
most organic base-instruments of Stonehenge.
Yet
all of this would only be grey, everyday and boring, if the number
one star of the team, the chief ace was „by accident” missing:
Alexander Horsch. This imposingly versatile, many-sided individuality
migrated to our country from the former „NDK” (or GDR, or DDR,
that’s Eastern Germany) after having travelled Central Asia, this
natural born talent using dozens of instruments with feeling,
homely and familiarly bustling about any kinds of folk/world music
projects, a real shaman musician and globe-trotter. Undoubtedly
we owe the very most to him. It is no use discussing the matter
on: what he does with jew’s-harp, fuyara and lute and kaval –
and last, but not least his own throat – that fully talks about
itself.
We
also have to mention the name of Keijiro Takaku, who – as being
already the artistic director of Kiyo-Kito Taiko, and as a folk
musician playing hurdy-gurdy, too – similarly contributed much
to the final forming of the sounding of the musical world of Stonehenge,
with his ideas for shaping of the structures of the songs, and
his various, coloured effects-instruments.
Beside
them, also playing in some songs: Bela Szerenyi on hurdy-gurdy,
Gabor Clemente on percussions, Zsuzsa Brezovai on cello; Janos
Kis on kaval; Tibor Jersabek on drums. There appear the shaman
drummers of the Synthesis… And who was not mentioned yet by name:
Julia Laszlo and Gabor Vastag (taiko); Tamas Paulinyi, Katalin
Furjes, Bea Kecskemeti and Robert Olessak (from the shaman drum
circle); furthermore Jozsef Szendrey, Janos Kerekes, Balazs Martin,
Gabor Zsarnai and Sandor Homolai (the didgeridoo players from
the Turunga and Gudanjabro).
Finally,
who brought together, arranged and organized everything, first
finding out the main conception behind that is again: Tamas Paulinyi
(of course).
Summing
up what has been said, we may consequently declare that the active
period from 2005 to 2007 only was the last three years nearly
of an entire decade spent by much slow preparing and evolvement,
until finally these strange songs of a rare taste could blossom
out – as a result of some well-grounded, seriously patient inner
a-waiting; however, in its own way still a little unpredictably
and incalculably.
In
2010, in the 10th jubilee Spring Drum Celebration also called
as the Big Bang concert, there was a new Stonehenge performace
again, in the mark of recalling the more meaningful creative endeavours
of the last decade. Besides this, there wasn’t any appearance
in the last few years; however, considering that this group was
never „officially” founded, so thus it cannot either cease, but
every time is born again, with new, different membership, you
may never know what the future brings…
Robert
Olessak (2010)
Kiyo-Kito
Taiko
07/07/2011
Kiyo-Kito
Taiko
Synthesis
Shaman Drum Circle
07/07/2011
Synthesis
Shaman Drum Circle
Our
Bands brochure (2010)
07/07/2011
Our
Bands brochure (Kiyo-Kito, Synthesis and Stonehenge) (0.3
MB)
