I am listening to “Playing for Change”. Let Mark Johnson tell you what it is before I do!
Playing for Change is beautiful! It is about the power of music. It is about the power of people. It is about the power of humanity. Simply put, “Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music”. Please be a part of it.
Anyone who knows me will tell you how big music is a part of my life, even though I can’t create any. I love Jazz, but I also love Blues and Rock. Even though I do not understand much, there are a few Indian Classical Ragas and Western Classical pieces I hold dear. I might even listen to some electronic music when I am in the mood. And I am not embarrassed to admit that there are even a few Michael Jackson tracks which I enjoy! For me, first and foremost, it is about the music and how I react to it. I don’t care about the labels and the sophistication. It has to move me, up or down. Period!
And ‘”Playing for Change” did more than that! It made my eyes moist at the lost opportunities of the human race.
Playing for Change began a decade ago, the brainchild of Grammy-winning music producer and engineer Mark Johnson. “I was in a subway in New York on my way to work, and I heard these two monks playing music,” he recalls. “They were painted head to toe, all white, wearing robes. One was playing a nylon guitar, and the other was singing in a language I didn’t understand. There were about 200 people who stopped to watch, didn’t even get on the train. Some had tears in their eyes. And it occurred to me that here is a group of people that would normally run by each other, but instead they’re coming together. And it’s the music that brought them together.”
For ten years Johnson and his team travelled the globe, with a single-minded passion to record little-known musicians for what would become Playing for Change – its name evoking the coins thrown to street musicians as well as the transformation their music inspires.
They have come a long way since then and have had artists like Bono, Keb Mo and Manu Chao contributing to their cause. They have a double album out now. You can buy the CD online, or if you are in the US or Canada(Prasun, I am looking at you!), you can even buy the MP3 album. I have already ordered the CD just before posting this! What better convincing could I ask for than the fact that the primary musical inspiration for this movement has been Bob Marley! As they clarify,
If there is one musician in the world who has been the musical inspiration for Playing for Change, it is Bob Marley. He created music that allows us to feel good while we examine the struggles and importance of uniting as a human race. His music can pick you up when you are down and raise you to a level of consciousness and understanding that brings peace of mind and heart to millions all over the world. “One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain.”
Even if we can’t play, let us at least listen… for Change!
(Last words – I wanted to thank Kanya, on whose Facebook page I first discovered Playing for Change.)
[UPDATE: My favourite from this site has to be this, featuring Bono:
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