Ek

Manika Kaur specialises in kirtan, the main communal ritual of the Sikh religion that entails the practice of singing mystical verses from the Sikh scriptures known as the Guru Granth Sahib. Her contemporary treatment of a musical tradition that is centuries old has not only received overwhelming praise from the global Sikh community, but is also popular with a growing number of music lovers worldwide. Her new album, Ek, (which translates as ‘One’ or ‘Oneness’) features 11 tracks, each of which opens with a different featured instrument from an array of outstanding UK-based musicians like Jyotsna Srikanth on violin, Soumik Datta on sarod and Jesse Bannister on saxophone among numerous others including Kirpal Singh Panesar on the dilruba (a boxed lute played with a bow), an extremely rare instrument which has played a vital historical role in Sikh devotional music.

Kaur’s vocal style, which features a mixture of the original verses interspersed with English translations, is one that induces tremendous peace and calm, even with the songs that are traditionally delivered in a faster-paced, high-energy pitch when sung in Sikh temples. As with her previous album, Sacred Words, all of the proceeds of her recordings, most aptly, help raise funds for the education of girls in rural Punjab, gender equality and the right to education being a vital cornerstone of the Sikh religion.