Kaleidoscopic color Inspired to use all 300 colors in his hotshop, Chihuly explores unexpected color combinations with the Macchia series. Chihuly adds brightly colored spots (Macchia is Italian for spot) for a speckled effect, and pushes the possibilities of scale to create pieces up to four feet in diameter. Psychedelia of a darker shade than usual, Francie Moon eschew kaleidoscopic colors for a slow, sludgey trek through the sonic badlands. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 16, 2019. Mystic Hits by Sugar Candy Mountain. Ash Reiter and co. Dial in just the right amount of psychedelics on this album of outer worldly cosmic surf pop.

Written by: Muhammad Awais
Posted on: September 02, 2020 | | 中文

Frescos on the Mosque Walls (photo credits to orphanednation.com)

There is no dearth of beautiful historic mosques in Pakistan, which use their art and architecture as tools of expression and worship. The Jamia Masjid (Grand Mosque) of Rawalpindi is one such mosque in the old city centre, which stands out from the older buildings of Rawalpindi and the Mughal-style mosques in Punjab. It is one of the oldest mosques still standing in the city, and has continued to fascinate people with its aesthetics and history. It is located in a narrow street at the junction of Bagh Sardaran and Jamia Masjid Road (named after the mosque), some 15 minutes away from Saddar Bazaar.

The mosque is spread across 8 acres as a rectangular building with three large domes on top, and several small minarets. Although seemingly humble and unassuming on the outside, the mosque opens into a breathtaking and panoramic view of the compound. There is a fountain in the center of the courtyard, and the mosque ground can hold up to 8,000-10,000 people. The blue and white hue of the exterior is only a small preview to the dazzling color scheme and inside.

Jamia Masjid’s overall structure harks back to traditional Mughal three-dome design, and acoustics which allows the people speaking on one end of the mosque to be heard on the other. The bright colors of the mosque walls have geometric patterns, floral designs, tile mosaics and verses from the Quran. The intricate designs in their hypnotic colors have remained largely untouched by time, and continue to fascinate those who visit. According to architect Ghafer Shahzad, the mosque façade uses the basic shape of the arch to create traditional frescos with unconventional materials, colors and techniques. And the final result is as unique as the history of the grand mosque.

What is perhaps most interesting is the way the mosque was constructed as a community project. Construction began in 1903, when Sikh businessmen like Sujan Singh created magnificent spaces dedicated to communal worship like Bagh Sardaran. But there was virtually no space where Muslims of Rawalpindi could congregate for larger gatherings like Eid prayers. Two saints of the Chishti order (a notable Sufi order during the Mughal Era), Pir Mehar Ali Shah of Golra Sharif and Khawaja Ahmed of Maira Sharif, laid the first foundations of this mosque.

An Arch with Frescos photo credits to orphanednation.com)

During the British Era, construction of the mosque became a communal, collaborative effort. Notable community members like, Qazi Guhar Ali, Mian Qutbuddin and Mian Nabi Baksh came together to build a beautiful and aesthetically pleasing house of worship that would bring pride to their community. At the time, there were few buildings owned by wealthy Muslims and the city only had two major Muslim neighborhoods: Waris Shah mohalla and Pir Harra mohalla.

Finance was a large constraint, and many wealthy and influential community leaders scoured Rawalpindi and much of Punjab to fund the mosque’s construction. It was said that the neighborhood women used to donate a fistful of flour to pay for the mosque’s construction, and the men designated one day of every week to aid construction efforts. During more extreme times, women also donated jewelry and one resident of Peshawar donated Rs. 0.1 million, which was no small feat.

Mughal-style Mosque Facade (photo credits to Scheherzadeh on Twitter)

Locals, who have been visiting the mosque for generations, claim that masons from Chakwal were brought to help embellish the mosque. Sikh woodcarvers, who were revered for their skill and flair carved the doors while Muslim painters completed the fresco work. While some attribute its inspiration to older mosques of the Pothohar like Mai Qamro (located a little outside Islamabad), others believe its structure is more reminiscent of the Mughal architecture also found in the towns of Wah and Fateh Jang. The mosque was completed in 1905, and the Pir of Golra Sharif was present for the first Friday sermon.

Church Choir Music Kaleidoscopic Colors

The century-old frescos of the mosque can still be found in the interior halls, very reminiscent of the warm tones and floral patterns used by the Mughals. However, it is unfortunate that much of the older work has been lost to age and water damage. Alhtough most of the art is intact, amateur attempts at renovation have been done to some of the façade at the expense of losing of the precious work done by the original artisans. Currently, the mosque has its own caretakers and finance offices, many concerned citizens and history enthusiasts have pushed for the mosque to be recognized as a historical monument.

Kaleidoscope Colour Chart

The entrance to the Mosque, hidden between shops and cables (photo credit to Dawn)

Jamia Masjid Rawalpindi is one of the most dazzling and colorful mosques to be found in the Pothohar region, which is a testament to the craftsmanship and dedication with which it was made. What has been so fascinating is how the history of Muslims in the Subcontinent and South Asian architectural influences have come together in one space in the heart of Old Rawalpindi. It deserves to be treated with the same recognition, reverence and respect as all historical sites in Pakistan, which also means ensuring its proper care and conservation.

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By Phillip Lutz I Dec. 5, 2019

“Kaleidoscope,” the opening track on Hiromi Uehara’s new solo album, Spectrum, features the dazzling displays of pianism that have become her trademark: cascading waves of right-hand notes; countervailing left-hand runs that pull, like rip currents, against the sonic flow; melodic figures that appear, disappear and reappear in mutated form amid the roiling sea of sound. The spectacle astounds.

But beyond the spectacle—and beneath the keyboard—lies the source of a telling twist: the piano’s sostenuto pedal. An oft-ignored appendage that sustains selected tones, the pedal, under Hiromi’s foot, transforms the most unassuming phrases in “Kaleidoscope” into pulsating facsimiles of digital delay. The strategy—and it is decidedly that—is both aesthetically striking and designed to heighten the piano’s appeal to 21st-century ears.

“I love the instrument and I want people to know its potential,” she said.

Few pianists exploit the potential of their instruments with the range of skill and emotion that Hiromi has at her disposal. Even at her most effulgent, she is the most intimate of pianists—an effortlessly charismatic communicator who, through her music, evangelizes for the instrument. And, in making that case, few documents testify more powerfully than Spectrum (Telarc).

Recorded in February 2018 when she was 39 years old, the new nine-track collection is the second in a series of solo albums she’s set to release marking 10-year increments in her life. At 29, she recorded Place To Be (Telarc), her first solo album. She plans to record the third album in the solo series when she is 49.

That Hiromi observes these milestones with solo albums is no coincidence. While her involvement with other formats is no less formidable—her duo and trio work in particular have electrified audiences—solo performance, by her own account, holds both a fascination for her intellect and a mirror to her musical soul.

“The more I play solo, the more challenging it gets,” she said. “It’s like a never-ending adventure for me. I just want to be alone with the piano, looking at myself as a pianist.”

The solo work has won the admiration of impresarios like George Wein, founder of the Newport Jazz Festival. “When she’s playing solo, nothing gets in her way,” said Wein, who has since 2006 booked her at the festival five times, in both solo and trio formats, and, along with fellow pianists Jacky Terrasson and the late Cedar Walton, in a series of solo “summit” concerts in 2011. “Playing solo, you get the most out of Hiromi.”

The summit concerts were scheduled at a time when Hiromi was emerging as a notable solo voice. Place To Be, a two-disc set released in 2009, had been garnering raves for the scope and execution of its offerings, from the relentlessly lyrical title track (a duo version of which had appeared in 2008 on a Concord release with Chick Corea, Duet: Chick & Hiromi) to the three-part “Viva! Vegas” (a mini-suite that is, well, kaleidoscopic in its evocation of Sin City).

Despite the praise, the success of Place To Be was by no means preordained. Hiromi’s five previous albums, all combo works, had not necessarily prepared her for the solo effort. “There was a lot of work with other people, and she wasn’t completely exposed,” said Michael Bishop, who has produced or engineered nearly all of her albums for the past decade through his Five/Four Productions. “She was more apprehensive about how a solo piano recording was going to be accepted in the world.”

The recording session, in fact, took some time to find its footing. “For me as the engineer,” Bishop said, “it seemed like the project overall was more work because it wasn’t her familiar element.” But, he said, things began to fall into place during an evening session when, as the night grew late and the studio lights were dimmed, she dug into the title tune. “She created such an incredible moment.”

Recalling the moment, Hiromi grew animated as she discussed how, when the atmosphere in the studio changed, so too did her relationship to her instrument: “It made me feel more focused. It made me feel as though it’s me and the piano. I could really feel every sound of the piano, the overtones, all these [sonic] details.”

A decade later, that feeling returned with added potency at the recording session for Spectrum. “There was a lot more confidence,” Bishop recalled. “It was just off and running. It didn’t ramp up like Place To Be did. She just ripped right into it. Within 10 minutes of doing our sound check, she was doing the first takes of ‘Rhapsody In Blue.’ We were recording ‘keeper’ takes within the first half hour.”

The intention on the first day was simply to run a sound check. But the plush surroundings in Skywalker Sound, the studio at filmmaker George Lucas’ Marin County ranch, induced in Hiromi a kind of adrenaline rush and, in two extended takes, she produced the material that became “Rhapsody In Various Shades Of Blue.”

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