Mystic Minstrels from Bengal

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Wandering mystic minstrels from  Bengal will make a special appearance at the Diwali Festival of Lights in Auckland this coming weekend.

Uttam Das Baul and Lakshan Das Baul are traditional baul singers, whose music connects with spirituality and nature.

They are the sons of one of India’s best known baul singers, Deb Das Baul from Bolpur, in West Bengal.

Bauls are bards, composers, musicians, dancers and actors all rolled into one, and their mission is to entertain. Through their songs, pauses, gestures, and postures, these nomadic mendicants spread the message of love and ecstasy wherever they went.

In a land devoid of mechanical entertainment, Baul singers were a major source of entertainment. Though neglected for some time, there has been a renewed interest in the sounds of these traditional songs among the new generation.

Younger musicians have reworked the traditional music with modern beats and sounds, producing a new style of alternative music which is rapidly gaining in  popularity.

The baul musicians are visiting Auckland from New Plymouth’s Govett-Brewster Art Gallery where they performed as part of the Holiwater programme.