Afro-Cuban Archive

Song Of Lahore – The Sachal Ensemble (2016)

by Audiophile Audition | Nov 8, 2016 | DVD & Blu-ray Video Reviews

Song Of Lahore – The Sachal Ensemble (2016) A compelling documentary about a Pakistani jazz group! Studio: Broadgreen Pictures 94174630 Directors: Andy Schocken & SharmeenObaid-Chinoy featuring The Sachal Ensemble and guest performers – Wynton Marsalis and The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 Video 1.78:1 for widescreen 16:9, color Length: 82 minutes Ratings:    Audio: ****    Video: ***1/2       Overall:***1/2 It’s not often that a musical documentary tackles complicated socio-political issues and provides great music. But Song Of Lahore does exactly that. This is a tale of a Pakistani musical group, older in age, trying to navigate the intrinsic need to reconcile their artistic vision and heritage (with a decidedly American jazz influence) with the overall restrictive cultural limitations of Sharia law. There is a seventies montage that provides the historical context for this complicated narrative. Bitterness doesn’t overtake the life of Nijat Ali as he tries to manage the music group at The Sachal Studios. Following the previously mentioned Sharia law in the seventies, the ties that bind have been breached. The struggle is with reviving this special music and band and extricating them from generational conflicts that serve as a sub-text for the […]