I recently aquired a shruti box which is an indian drone instrument. It works like a harmonium, using a pump and reeds to create a sound. Till now I’ve been using my voice to create a single note drone.
Last November I played a set supporting Jack Rose and the Black Twig Pickers in Penryn in Cornwall, with Simon Drinkwater and Alex Black. Sadly Jack Rose passed away in December – a terrible and sudden shock to all those that knew him and loved his unique guitar finger picking. We had only just seen him on top form here in Cornwall, playing a remarkable set with The Black Twigs.
With my new shruti box I wrote a song for the gig based around a spoken word story. Rather like the Ferry Art piece (see last entry) I wanted to incorporate the spoken word narrative into a song and find a way to move between the two. The verses are recitted to the drone and the choruses are sung to a melody. This song is going to be a part of a longer piece of music, a mini opera all in the drone of e flat, but for now I’ve put The Story part here for download. Hope you enjoy..
Minko Music 