The Jaipur Kawa Brass Band: Dance of the Cobra

The Jaipur Kawa Brass Band is a collection of Rajasthani gypsies in Northern India, led by renowned bandleader Hameed Khan Kawa.  The group hails from the Thar Desert, "The Original Land of Gypsies," and merges their traditional sounds with classical Indian music and  popular Bollywood movie soundtracks, all with the rousing brass marching band traditions that flooded the country with British colonialism in the 1700s.   It's an unexpectedly badass mix, sounding like some exotic James Bond chase theme, as you can see for yourself...

keep in mind that the band is often accompanied by a female Sapera dancer from the snake charming Kabelian tribe, where snakes are worshiped as guardians of spiritual truth, as well as by a sword swallowing/fire eating fakir (magician). 

Jaipur Kawa Brass Band released their album, Dance of the Cobra, in 2013 through the UK label World Music Network/Riverboat Records.  a little research showed that Dance of the Cobra is full of classic Bollywood soundtrack hits, performed mostly as instrumentals, but completely reformed when blasting through the horns and percussion of the Thar Desert in a marching band procession.  it's unlike anything i've heard.

here are some key tracks, and if you like what you hear, go to World Music Network's site, pick up a copy of the album HERE , and put some money in their pockets.








~kojak

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