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WHEN MR GAMBUS MET MR DICKSON
Mar 27, 2005, New Sunday Times

Story and pictures by JESSICA LIM. Click to enlarge.

It was only two minutes into his performance, but Australian-based flamenco guitarist Peter Dickson's forehead was already glazed with sweat.

His lighting-fast fingers were a blur of motion and his face a scrunched-up ball of intensity as he played at The Backyard Pub in Taman Sri Hartamas on Wednesday.

India-born Dickson teamed up with local jazz virtuoso Farid Ali aka Mr Gambus and his band for a night of highly-skilled East-meets-West fusion music.

Dickson, who is of English parentage, is currently on tour promoting his solo album "Alone With You" , a Latin/funk-styled showcase of Dickson's impressive technical skill. From the way Dickson and Farid got it together that night, one would think the duo had been performing together for years.

Not so, however. The first time the two guitarists met was for an hour-long rehearsal that day.

"Ah, but we had no problem playing together," said Dickson.

"Farid is a beautiful man, immensely talented. He can read me, you know what I mean?

"We've got a mutual vibe going on."

Joining the duo on stage for different sets were Dickson's wife Hideko Toyokawa, who played the bongos, and Farid's band, aptly called The Farid Band.

The members are David 'Awa' Yee on bass, Eric Li on keys and drummer John Thomas.

Dickson's third number, Six4Chick, was complemented by a lively flamenco dance by Havana Estudio teacher, performer and choreographer, Kayla.

Dickon took the stage during the first set, playing five compositions from Alone With You, which he described as "a very personal album." Pilots of Pain, Dickson's only slow solo number that night, was the guitarist's tribute to the victims of the Sept 11 disaster.

He told of how he was performing in Sydney at the moment the plan crashed into the World Trade Centre.

"Watching the 9-11 disaster was such a jolt. It made me realise how vulnerable we all can be, and how we have to treasure the people and things precious to us," he said. One could almost see the tears in his eyes as he performed the piece.

Dickson's flamenco compositions reflect varied styles of playing including jazz, Indian, Latin, Spanish and French gypsy. Flamenco, the dance style of the Andalusian Gypsies, is characterised by forceful, often improvised rhythms.

The Farid Band caused a quite a stir when they appeared, especially with the introduction of Farid's gambus, or Malay lute.

There is a deep love between Farid and the 12-stringed instrument, which he uses to create a new sound he calls "jazz gambus".

The gambus, said to be invented 3,000 years ago, is a pear-shaped stringed instrument which, when plucked, sounds like a harpischord or mandolin.

Farid brought the gambus onto the world stage when he played it in the Jarasum Jazz Festival in Korea and the Pori International Jazz Festival in Finland last year.

"If you do a little of research on the Internet about the gambus, you'll find that it is getting extinct.

"Well, let's just see what we can do about that," said Farid before launching into Zapin Blues, a composition from his album Turning Point.

It is striking to note that both men, after decades of pursuing musical knowledge in Western classical jazz, now decide that their personal journey as musicians will take them back to their Asian roots.

For Farid, his path as a musician leads him to his gambus while for Dickson, it lies in India where he grew up.

"Asia is in my heart and soul. I love everything Asian," said Dickson, with a cheeky sidelong glance at his laughing Japanese wife. -- nstunt@nst.com.my

Links: March 23rd Photos | Peter Dickson's website | Farid Ali's website |

© News Straits Times Press Bhd