The Hindu Business Line : Magical journey

WHEN Images Quartette plays you could be forgiven for thinking that a group of magicians is on stage. For these five French musicians create music that enthrals, uplifts and leaves you feeling recharged.

So when they play a desert song, you can literally feel the hot desert air in your face and see a camel caravan wending its way across an arid landscape. And when they perform a folksy Irish tune, the temptation to jump up and shake a leg is strong.

Western classical, jazz and world music are all part of Image Quartette's repertoire. However, at the heart of their music is the clarinet or rather the entire family of clarinets, explains Bruno Cohard, the group's founder. "The real aim is to use the whole family of clarinets or at least the four important ones and make good music," he adds.

So, while Cohard plays the big bass clarinet, Arnaud Pairier plays the basset horn, Vincent Lauret the small clarinet and Francois Chambert, the clarinet. Jean-Bernard Lasserre, the fifth member of the group plays the drums. The group included drums because Cohard felt that without it "something was missing," he explains. On their first visit to the country, the group has found the response from Indian audiences "incredible." Images Quartette is on a 10-city tour supported by the Embassy of France and the Alliance Francaise network.

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Magical journey

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