What makes a musician who he is? The town where he grows up, the music he discovers along the way, the people he plays with and, above all, the encounters that linger in his memory.
Our new resident artist, Haroun Iqbal, appeared on Strop The Music, Wim Verbeke’s Ghent-based podcast. A conversation about music, Ghent, inspiration and life as a musician. But it was also a great opportunity to get to know Haroun a bit better.
A podcast about the people behind the music
Anyone who spends time on the Ghent music scene is bound to come across a story from Strop The Music sooner or later. In the podcast, Wim Verbeke chats to Ghent-based musicians about their careers, their city and the music world in which they are finding their way. Both big names and lesser-known voices are given the chance to talk at length about where they come from, who they’ve played with and what has shaped them along the way.
This doesn’t result in the usual promotional spiel, but in conversations about the people behind the music. About the places where musicians took their first steps, the chance encounters that can change a career, and the many paths that lead to the stage.
Haroun Iqbal has now joined that line-up.
A musician without boundaries
Haroun Iqbal is difficult to pigeonhole into a single musical genre. His artistic journey blends jazz, Indian music and West African griot traditions. Not as isolated influences, but as different worlds that can constantly intersect.
That is also what attracted us at Ha Concerts to his work. In the first letter the programme director Jaïr wrote to Haroun, he describes his journey as one in which the artificial boundaries between classical, jazz and ‘world’ music seem to be fading away. Haroun is constantly on the lookout for new connections between styles, musicians and traditions.
That curiosity led him, for example, to the music of West African griots. A meeting with Bassekou Kouyaté and Amy Sacko made a deep impression on him and further fuelled his interest in that tradition. He even travelled to Senegal to explore in greater depth the way in which guitarists there approach traditional music.
For Haroun, discovering music therefore also means: keeping on listening, keeping on learning and allowing yourself to be surprised time and time again.
From musician to artist in residence
What’s more, Haroun has been our new resident artist since the start of this season.
This means more than just a name appearing on our website for a season. We’ll be engaging in dialogue with one another throughout the entire season. In the letters already published, Haroun and programme curator Jaïr write to one another about music, their practice and the world around them. It’s a dialogue that will continue to evolve throughout the year.
For Haroun, this kind of in-house artist role is above all an opportunity to allow different ideas and projects to coexist. He deliberately wants to cover a broad spectrum: from Haroun’s Heartbreak Hotel’ featuring Helena Casella, with strings, to an album release with his jazz quartet Iqnovara, featuring the Pakistani sarod player Asad Qizilbash as a guest musician. A project with the Malian guitarist Bao Sissoko is also on his wish list.
So this won’t be a season centred on a single genre or a single project. Rather, it’s a musical journey in which different worlds can intersect.
“Connection is the essence of our humanity.”
Haroun Iqbal
Haroun on music, Ghent and his journey
In Strop The Music, Haroun is given the opportunity to talk about that journey: the music that has shaped him, the city where he is based, and the various steps that ultimately led him to Ha Concerts as their resident artist.
It’s a conversation that goes beyond a mere list of projects. Above all, it gives you a sense of the musician behind those projects: someone who remains curious, enjoys forging new connections, and sees music as a constant quest.
And perhaps that’s the best way to get to know Haroun: not through a single genre, a single album or a single project, but by hearing him talk about everything in between.
Iqnovara (album release)
For fans of Shakti, Vijay Iyer, Anouar Brahem, Aka Moon
Jazz meets ragas – featuring special guest Asad Qizilbash
20:15 Tickets