Four days in four different schools in Delhi NCR with RAGGABUND was a great experience. The credit goes to Goethe Institut or Max Mueller Bhavan. I will call it a phenomenal art and culture event by the German Reggae group. While the schools were different on all fours days were different. So were the students and teachers. But the zeal, passion for learning, fun, enthusiasm, and love for music was same. So was the fire in RAGGABUND team. First days were at Lotus Valley International School, Noida. There were two workshops for two groups of students of the school. One workshop was on Songwriting. The other was on Beatboxing. The second day was for the live concert in DPS (Delhi Public School, Indirapuram). The third day again was for the workshops in Ahlcon International School, Mayur Vihar. And finally, it was a concert in Kulachi Hansraj Model School, Ashok Vihar.
What Goethe Institut is doing is something quite remarkable. And it is doing this fabulous work so silently that people hardly come to know about it. There is a continuous effort to ensure that young students get ample exposure to various forms of art and culture. RAGGABUND is a German Reggae band. It is a versatile group of four music artists. Their key strong areas are a mix of offbeat, dancehall, and cumbia mufin. Their first album ERSTE WELT is a landmark in early German Reggae. And this November it was Delhi’s young and budding artists turn to experience their foot tapping performance of Reggae. This visit is part of their current tour to South Asia. After performing in Karachi, Colombo, Chennai, and Bangalore they were to visit Kolkatta before coming to Delhi. Here the agenda was two concerts and two workshops.
Four Days with RAGGABUND Was a Super Reggae Experience
This was a great chance for students to learn to beatbox and write songs from the legends. While the concerts were in DPS Indirapuram and Kulachi Hansraj Model School, the workshop was at Lotus Valley International School and Ahlcon International School. The RAGGABUND includes German reggae and dancehall party Duo Don Caramelo and Paco Mendoza. Both are with Latin roots. Other two are Hermanos Mikey Board and De Luca of the Swiss band The Dubby Conquerors. Thus it makes them a complete international group. This was their first visit to India. The excitement was at its peak at both ends. The concerts were full of energy, life, and magic. Those moments will remain in every student’s heart for a long time. Similarly, workshops were phenomenal for students. First was to learn to make music instruments voices from the mouth in BeatBox workshop. And learning instant songwriting in another workshop.
RAGGABUND is a multilingual band. They sing in German, Spanish, French, and English. As a matter of fact, there is a lot of experimentation going on. In fact, they are also working together with an Indian band from Kolkata. Let us see what this fusion brings on board. Definitely, everyone is eagerly waiting for their next albums to experience their innovative approach to music. In addition, I have uploaded all the concert and workshop videos on my YouTube channel and FaceBook that can be accessed easily.
