Arko Mukhaerjee Collective

Kalkatte Kaiyo | Munich Nights | Arko Koustav & Sajib | A Fun Jam on this Nepali Folk Song

A fun time at our Munich home trying out this incredible classic by Jayananda Lama and few of the most celebrated musicians from Nepal. in the most difficult times music brings hope.

original tune credits

Singer Jayananda Lama/Balram Karki/Sarita Lama/Baba Basnet
Lyrics Jayananda Lama
Music Jayananda Lama
Arko Sajib & Koustav

Ukali Orali | Arko & Sajib | Madal & African Harp | songs from Nepal, Bengal & West Africa | 2023

Sajib Sarkar, a young teenager from Gobindapur village, Shantipur, came to Kolkata from a village 120 kms away for 15 years on local train to play, learn and accompany artists on desi percussions.

Today Sajib is a celebrated exponent of folk percussions. I am privileged to be a friend and a band member with him.

Here is a part of a chat and jam on common 6/8 folk polyrhythms that are used universally through a jam of songs travelling between Nepal, Bengal and West Africa.

Driver Dai | Arko & Sajib | A beautiful old Nepali Song with an African Harp and a Tamang Madal

This is a really beautiful folk song from Nepal, performed by many artists over decades. Our love respect and gratitude to Tirtha Kumari, Suraj Thapa, Kharka Buda, Keshav Poudel, Sunder Shrestha for creating such an incredible song for music listeners. We have only tried in my own way to simply sing a few verses of the song with my ukulele here. My Nepali pronunciation is not great. But my love for the Nepali melodies and beautiful polyrhythms is something I can never give up. I love the music of the mountains and valleys.

My regards and love to all my listeners.

Beni Ko Bazar | Nepali Folk Song | Rooftop Live | Folk-Electronica | Arko & Friends | 2023

This is a tribute to Tikabahadur Shrestha, Manu Chhantyal Shrestha and all artists (Raju Pariyar, Bima Kumari Dura, Man Kumari Chhantyal ) who have sung and popularised this beautiful and unique song for decades in Nepal through all different media.

This is a live one take recording between Arko, Sajib and Koustav featuring Kanishka Sarkar on Live Music Production & Electronica and David Beck on the Moroccan Guimbri. It was a meeting of Berlin and Kolkata soundscapes in a unique collaboration that took place in Jan 2023. With Kanishka, I have been touring with our Berlin based folk electronic duo Ashram for a decade now and it all makes perfect sense to welcome our friends into this family of music.

My regards to Basab Mulick and Amit Biswas for shooting with equal passion and respect towards the song and the moment.

Edited by Arko Mukhaerjee

Manush Ekta Koler Gaari | Bangla Baul Song | Arko & Casey Rooftop Collab | Dotara and Fiddle | 2023

With the legendary Casey Driessen, one of the best violinists/fiddlers of present times, this was a dive into a song from my teenage, an ages old Baul Mahajani song, Manush Ekta Koler Gaari written by Shivananda.

The song was popularised by Late Nimaichand Goswami, and this is an attempt to revisit these epochal texts of the great Baul/Sufi mystics and the music that shaped me for years.

Kaaliya | Mohe Laagi Lagan | Arko & Sajib | Rooftop Jam 2023

Sajib Sarkar, a young teenager from Gobindapur village, Shantipur, came to Kolkata from a village 120 kms away for 15 years on local train to play, learn and accompany artists on desi percussions.

Today Sajib is a celebrated exponent of folk percussions. I am privileged to be a friend and a band member with him.

Here are two beautiful desi bhakti / biraha tunes one from the Baul tradition of Bengal and the other a Meera Bhajan.

Kasturi Hey | Casey Driessen & Arko Mukhaerjee | A Late Narayan Gopal classic| Nepali Song | 2023

This is a super exciting collaboration between Arko and Casey Driessen, an American bluegrass fiddler and singer. Casey is a grammy nominee and has performed with Béla Fleck, Abigail Washburn, Steve Earle, Tim O’Brien, Darrell Scott, Jim Lauderdale, Lee Ann Womack, Mark Schatz, John Doyle, Paul Simon and Chris Thile. He has recorded with Darol Anger, John Mayer, Jerry Douglas, Jamey Haddad, and Blue Merle. He has also recorded on the soundtrack for the Johnny Cash film Walk the Line.

This is to remember the love and dedication of Sir Narayan Gopal and singers of that era who define the soundscape of Nepal and it’s diverse music traditions. This video is also a tribute to the life of underprivileged people across the world and their everyday struggle to live.

The song aims at spreading love, togetherness and communal harmony across all communities beyond the politics of divide and hatred.

Sindhuli Gadhi | Arko & Koustav | Ending a Rooftop Jam | Guitar & Domra from Kazakhstan

Music is not proving a point to anyone. The spontaneous jams and the associated moments of fun exceed the charm of all formats named by society. All music is in the moment of listening and playing. The whole point is to get lost and found in the process. A process far more honest than judgements.

Dada Paye Pori | Lahure ko | Gacher Pata | Our Tribal Melas | Arko & Koustav | Winter on a Rooftop

Our music and culture of the land from Bengal to Nepal to the far west, all originates from agriculture and farming and related festivals and Melas celebrating harvest or planting of the seeds. This is dedicated to all who are the true masters of the land, those who have been feeding us for generations.

Arko and Friends | Africa to Tribal Bengal | Moussolou – Mali | Raat Pohaile – Manbhum | Rooftop Jam

A fun impromptu jam at sunset on my rooftop with two of the most beautiful human beings I know. Sajib on Dubki and Koustav on guitar. They are truly spontaneous, loving and caring musicians. They are friends. Not hands or just accompaniment. It is all of us together that makes music possible.

In this jam we travel from Moussolou, a traditional song from the wassoulou tribe from Mali, Africa, immortalised by Oumou Sangare, to a Manbhumi tribal song from the red soil Santhali belt of Bengal around Asansol and Raniganj where tribal men were taken as labourers in coal mines. The Bengali song was written as a poem by Arun Chatterjee, a local poet from the area and put to tune by Ajit Pandey, based on age old traditional tunes of the Santhali community.

This is essentially a fun jam that tries to capture the beautiful 6/8 dance groove that resides in every corner of the world. So play the song, enjoy, dance, share and spread love beyond all boundaries.

Arko Mukhaerjee and Nishad Pandey | Aam Paka | Bengali Tribal Folk Song | Rooftop Live

Arko and Nishad together forms a contemporary folk – jazz duo that works on traditional folk tunes from pan Asia. The music is entirely live and mostly unplanned, aiming at finding an impromptu experimental soundscape creating moments that are completely original and new every time.

Aam Paka is a tribal folk song from Purulia, located in the western part of Bengal. This rendition is a fun experimental take on the song through a blend of modern harmonies and elements of west African music and rhythms. the process of making is more improvisational, interactive and sensual rather than being too intellectual in terms of the music making.

Nishad Pandey is a phenomenal experimental jazz guitarist with unique ideas of his own that helps this duo of two friends to build an esoteric , eccentric sounscape. The project is presently based in Berlin where the two friends meet in summer and play at little art galleries and studios.

recorded and mixed by Sounak Roy

A BeardBoy films production.

Rajamati Community Jam London | At the Newari community drumming practice in Woolwich, London

In this very divided and power driven world, I am in search of simple moments of solidarity that people in little communities show.

I am proud of these young friends playing Newari community music in London. They practise together with full on energy, far away from their homes. teenagers to the elderly, this is an amazing feeling of togetherness I found in a rehearsal room in Woolwich.

all the best to you lovely humans.

Resham Firiri | London – Woolwich | Nepali Community Fundraiser For Orphan Children In Nepal – 2023

an amazing Nepali speaking audience in London! The entire hall singing together with every song ang groove together to this iconic folk anthem of the himalayas, it felt like playing in a home in Kathmandu or Pokhara with family members enjoying every bit. Special thanks to Kanishka Sarkar and Ashram(Berlin) for the incredible live sound designing and jamming.

Our love to HELP NEPAL Network, UK for organising this beautiful informal charity event and community gathering.

Timro Nai Maya, Arko, Dolinman & Naomi

Nepali folk tune, a Tribute to Jhalak Man Gandarbha

Arko Mukherjee on Vocals and Ukulele
Diptanshu Roy on Mandolin
Naomi Jean on Flute
Video by Karishma Siddique Roy

In the audience, my dad (Partha Roy) sitting on the stairs enjoying the jam.

Singing Warm Nepali folk tunes with Sharan Gaine Daju in a cold Darjeeling afternoon | Feb 2024

7 degrees. Cold windy Darjeeling. This man sits strong bowing flawlessly through his Sarangi strings and plays for 3 to 4 hours in different street corners of the town everyday. My beloved friend Sharan Gandharva is an asset of our mountain town. Not many realise his contribution to the warmth and spirit of our beloved Darjeeling. Till I am alive I ll b by his side singing along, whenever where ever I can.

Songs maybe owned by their writers. They are carriers of their untold stories, sorrows, bewilderment, joys and so much more. But there are people who thanklessly sing them to people around the world. Songs then become the stories of those who carry them. Such is music.

Darjeeling Winter Street Music with Sharan Daju | Tansen Ghamailo | Mohani | Arko | 2024

he sits in the cold in Darjeeling streets and sings his heart out playing beautiful classics and incredible polyrhythmic phrases on his sarangi. this is his little earning. he never stops.

singing songs with Sharanda is enriching for me.
Darjeeling cold can be brutal but such spontaneous jams brings in warmth in my life.
I try to save a little bit of time n money so I can contribute to the well being of such thankless artists who serve humamity in their own gentle yet resilient way.

Tansen Ghamailo | Kalkatte Kaiyo | A himali village kitchen jam | Tumling , Nepal | Arko M | 2024

My life has been enriched largely by the nature, music and people of the Singalila area along the borders of India and Eastern Nepal. It is beautiful always to be back here in this kitchen of Bhalu dai and Didi, two kind souls running a himali village homestay at 3000 meters in Tumling, across the bengal border. Singing this age old Jhalakman Gandharva classic in these far away hamlets is like seeing an invisible bridge of love building through these beautiful Nepali folk melodies.

I will keep coming here till my body permits. When the men in power are busy dividing, I find my little peace in these little hamlets where life blooms amidst all adversities.

Enjoy. Spread stories and songs of love. with whatever little bit you have.

Pidhima | Timro Nai Maya | Nepali Folk Music | Darjeeling Streets | Arko M & Sharan Gandharva | 2023

This beautiful musician, our very own gaine daju, Sharan Dai, is one of the most beautiful humans I know.

He teaches me to be patient and loving towards people and continues to practice his music with his voice and his sarangi straight on the streets of Darjeeling. He has been doing this for the past two decades everyday with equal honor, care and integrity. This is what music is for me.

this is a street jam in Darjeeling of 2 iconic folk songs from Nepal with Sharan daju’s beautiful sarangi. Pidhima Basera is a heartbreaking beautiful song on migrant labourer’s from Nepal by Late Buddhikrishna Lamichhane and Timro Nai Maya is how I got introduced to Late Jhalakman Gandharva and his legendary contribution to the earthy folklore of Nepal.

New Darjeeling Sarangi Jam 2023 | Babari Phool | Allare Nani | Sharan Gandharva & Arko Mukhaerjee

street is where the real fun is, the real jam is.

with my favourite Gainedai Sharanda on mall road Darjeeling.

Nepali lokgeet with dai’s beautiful sarangi and old Nepali lokgeet.

the Legendary Babari Ful ko bot by the great Pandav Sunuwar and Alllare Nani Kesi by my folk superhero, my most respected Jhalakman Gandharva.

enjoy…

Ghas Katne | Sarangi Jam at Begnas Lake | Arko & Friends | Open air folk session 2023

three of us had super fun at Begnas Lake Nepal with Ram Gandharva a local sarangi player.

this is the Legendary working class folk tune by Late Buddhi Krishna Lamichhane.

Enjoy

Arko & Friends ft. Ram Gandharva | Nepali sarangi | Begnas Lake Open Jam P2 | देउराली उकाली | 2023

we Koustav, Sajib and myself, during our recent visit to Nepal, found a new friend, Ram Gandharva Dai, a beautiful sarangi player and singer, a true folk artist from Begnas Lake area near Pokhara.

this is the second part, a jam on Deurali Ukali Chadera, an old folk classic by Saroj Gopal Bajracharya.

Begnas Open Jam P1 | Nepali Lokgeet | Arko & Friends ft. Ram Gandharva | Radha Piyari & more | 2023

we Koustav, Sajib and myself, during our recent visit to Nepal, found a new friend, Ram Gandharva Dai, a beautiful sarangi player and singer, a true folk artist from Begnas Lake area near Pokhara.

this is the first part, a jam through Gandharva Folk songs and old classics.

this is remembering Late Jhalakman Gandharva, the doyen of Nepali Folk songs, a man of this soil….

Tunguna Ko Dhun Ma | Toomba | Nepali Lokgeet to Qawwali | Live @ First Flush | Arko & Friends | 2022

The iconic songs of life are songs that connect people beyond all language barriers. In this cafe in Kolkata there were no Nepali or Punjabi speaking people. They all came together for music and enjoyed this simple groove of life together.

Songs do not do much apart from communicating love, emotions and togetherness beyond all the poisonous propagandas of hatred.

my beloved friends Sajib and Koustav have been making this journey beautiful like always.

Thanks to First Flush for being an. eternal support system to independent musicians of this city.

Video Shot and edited by Amit Biswas and his very able team. Love you all.

My beloved Kathmandu | Arko & Friends Live | A snippet | La Plaza | Reggae to Nepali Folk | 2022

Here is a little glimpse into our concert last August 2022 at La Plaza, Lalitpur, Kathmandu city. We the band, the audience, the crew all danced and sang together for 3 hours almost.

From Bob Marley to Late Buddhi Krishna Lamichhane, it was a crazy beautiful evening of songs and stories.

Enjoy. Share. Spread Love and Togetherness. Help the underprivleged.

Ghas Katne | Pidhima Basera | Arko & Friends | Live in Berlin | Nepali Lokgeet | Der Everest | 2022

this is a wonderful moment from a heartwarming evening meet and music session with my wonderful Nepali friends living in Berlin, Germany. Remembering and revisiting songs of Late Buddhi Krishna Lamichhane is something that I enjoy in every part of the world. Dai was the voice of Nepal’s working class people and it makes it more special to perform these songs in Der Everest to the entire Nepali speaking working community in Berlin.

special thanks to Nabin Upreti for inviting me to this lovely celebration of life.

the incredible musicians here are my friends Kanishka Sarkar on Percussion, David Beck on Gembri and Nishad Pandey on guitar. the entire house sang along.

my love and gratitude to Sandra Chatterjee for recording this snippet.

love and regards to all.

Maachi Kadaile | Mohani Lagla Hai | Arko & Friends ft Sandra | Live in Gangtok

improvisation on traditional and classic melodies is beautiful when the entire house joins in.

Purple Gangtok is a warm and wonderful music venue with superb food and great audience. It maintains a humble low key as a place and yet is truly sophisticated in terms of every bit of hospitality.

Parnu Pir Paryo | Allare Nani Kesi | Electronica & Nepali folk music | Arko & Friends | Sikkim 2022

Beautiful audience. Beautiful ambience. Purple Lounge Gangtok. 2022
May the beautiful mountain music of Nepal spread everyday everywhere.

Reggae Resham Firiri Live | a Nepali song beyond borders | Arko & Friends First Flush Kolkata 2022

The job of an artist is not just to show off. It is also not to exhibit his/her knowledge and expertise. It is essentially to reach out with his/her art to people. Beyond all barriers and boundaries.

I have sung this song more than a thousand times on stage. I never liked showing off what I can do as a craftsman in a song. The true success is when the barrier between the artist and the audience can be eradicated and an entire audience becomes a collective human endeavour to spread a common message of love. this song never gets old. It is a story of every common human being. I am grateful to Buddhi Pariyar for collecting such a masterpiece that can be sung and enjoyed by all.

Love and regards to my brother Amit Biswas for shooting and editing this.

With my dear friends Koustav and Sajib in a tea bar in Kolkata, this song brought together people from all around the city in a frame of togetherness and love beyond all barriers. Thanks to First Flush, Subhasishda and Tapasidi for always encouraging new experiments.

Kacha Hari | Bangla Baul Song | with the genius Daniel Givone | Inpromptu jam Clisson, France | 2022

a beautiful ages old old bengali Baul Song. written by Sandananda Gosain. this song (the words) is sung in more than 15 different melodies, changing with region, demography and dialect.

it was a great opportunity to spend a few days with this master guitarist and beautiful soul, Daniel Givone, a wonderful teacher and friend.

this is a simple and inpromptu improvisation. thanks to our good fried Clothilde for recording this.

Kanchi MaTyang Tyang | Arko & Vedant | Wildwoods Darjeeling | Nepali Lokgeet | Dotara & Guitar 2022

Kanchi Matyang Tyang is an old folk song from Nepal initially collected by Poet Tulasi Diwas and later sung by great artists from all over Nepal.

My friend Vedant Razz is a beautiful guitar player, composer, arranger and most importantly a wonderful friend for many years now. Vedant is the guitar player of renowned Darjeeling based band Ginger Feet and runs a lovely studio in Chandbari Darjeeling called Wildwoods. Vedant is a passionate musician and a music teacher and it was an absolute pleasure playing in the sitting room of his studio with a Guitar and a Bhawaiya Dotara ( similar to a Tunguna) trying out an acoustic bluesy take on this legendary song. The idea is to revisit old songs in a contemporary folk blues sound that we all grew up with.

Lahure ko & Kanchi Ghar | Darjeeling Street Music | Gaine Dajus | Mitrasen Thapa songs | 2022

The two most beautiful musicians I have known for decades now. Sharan and Ramesh Gandharva sings and plays on the streets of Darjeeling. This is what I know as peace. I went out in between my edit sessions for a stroll and this was today’s gift.

Darjeeling street jam with mero Dajus | Sarangi, music and spring afternoons.

Socho Agar | Imagine Adaptation | Remembering John Lennon | Arko Karrie & Dolinman | song for peace

SOCHO AGAR – Arko, Karishma and Diptanshu

This is an original adaptation of Lennon’s iconic song, recorded in a simple home recording setup, all of us urging humanity to come forward as a unified movement to end all wars and hunger for power. This is a simple one take recording. The song has previously been adapted in Bangla and many other languages.

The adaptation is written by Arko and performed together at the Roy house, Kolkata. This is in memory of Late Mr. Partha Roy, a man who taught us everyday to live for each other beyond all divisive propagandas.

Chari Maryo | Resham Firiri | Phool ko Aakhama | Mountain Basti Reggae | Pyaro Bhanjyang | 2022

My prized moments in my life are not in the studios. They are always with the people. Simple, Beautiful Loving people doing Common Everyday Things.

TUNGNA KO – Nepali Roots Music | Arko & Koustav | Rooftop Live | Chistmas & New Year Release

A long awaited release. For all simple hearted music lovers from around the world. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

This is an iconic Nepali Folk Song performed by several Nepali artists across the world.

Regards to Indrajit Mizar for beautifully singing and performing it for decades.

This is our year end gift for all our wonderful audiences across the globe.

Allare Nani Kesi | Arko Mukhaerjee Collective | Nepali Folk song | Rooftop Live

Arko Mukhaerjee Collective pays a humble live tribute to the immortal folk music of Jhalakman Gandharva from Nepal and Ali Farka Toure, Mali, Africa.

Allare Nani Kesi is a beautiful traditional folk song from western Nepal, popularised by the Late genius Jhalakman Gandharva. We definitely do not intend to match the genius of this legendary artist, but have tried to bring in elements of West African music, inspired by a folk composition of Late Ali Farka Toure, another folk legend from the globe.

Arko Mukhaerjee Collective | The Folk Express | A Journey through Nepal Bengal and Ireland | Bala Jouban – Saltoley – Auld Triangle | Rooftop Live

This is a friendly early summer morning jam on a city rooftop between 5 friends. We call it the folk express as it isa musical journey on a nameless train that travels through the valleys of Nepal, the arid lands of tribal Manbhum to the prison cells along the banks of the royal canal in England where a captive soul depicts his everyday mundanity through a simple song.

The songs are folk tunes namely
Bala Jouban (Nepali traditional song), Saltole Bela Dubilo (a tribal folk tune from Manbhum, Bengal) and The Auld Triangle, an Irish folk classic that was first used in Brendan Behan’s 1954 play “The Quare Fellow”. Our due regards to all the folk artists who have played these songs before us.

This is in memory of Jhalak Man Gandharba, one of the legends of Nepali folk music.

Recorded and mixed by Sourav Bagchi

Video shot and edited by BeardBoy Films

All rights of this production owned by www.arkomusic.com