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Transcription: [00:09:27]
{Homayonn Sakhi}
Uh because was war regular war and that's why I went to, we went to [[?]].
[00:09:34]
"Speaker 1")
[[?]]

[00:09:36]
{Homayonn Sakhi}
And I was [[?]] til 2001. And we came. Yes, 2001.

[00:09:41]
(Speaker 1)
A si que Homayonn Sakhi salio de Afganistan en ugh mil nuevecientos... ninety-one?

[00:09:46]
{Sakhi}
Ninety-two.

[00:09:48]
{Speaker 1}
Mil nueve cientos noventa y dos. Y estuvo en Peshawar, en Pakistan hasta llegar a EEUU en el... would it be 2000?


[00:09:56]
(Sakhi)
2001.

[00:09:57]
{Speaker 1}
Yeah. Yeah, 2001.

[00:09:59]
{Chelis}
Muy bien. Ahora, los dos viven en California? Me gustaria saber como se conocieron, si se conocieron en California? Y como deciden-eh ser musicos? Hacer esta maravilla musical que escuchamos ayer.

[00:10:10]
{Speaker 1}
And now you both live in California. Chelis is very interested in knowing how you both meet and how you came together to make this beautiful ugh marvelous music.

[00:10:22]
{Salar Nader}
Easy answer. Is destiny.

[00:10:24]
{Speaker 1}
(laughs) Su contestacion es destino.

[00:10:27]
{Nader}
Exactly (laughs).

[00:10:30]
{Speaker 1}
Exactamente (laughs).

[00:10:32]
{Nader}
Actually when he moved to [[Freemon?]], he established a music school. School for [[?]].

[00:10:38]
(Speaker 1}
El establecio un escuela de musica cuando llego a California.

[00:10:43]
{Chelis}
Si. Bueno ya que mencionas, antes que hablemos aparte de la escuela musical. Yo se que vienes de una familia de musicos. Eh, esto influyo en ti para convertirte en el musico que eres hoy?


[00:10:53]
{Speaker 1}
So, you come from a musical family, Homayonn, is that correct? And was that the ugh what the--

[00:10:57]
{Homayonn Sakhi}
Exactly yes. My father is also[[?]]...my teacher.

[00:11:03]
{Speaker 1}
Su papa tambien su maestro.

{Sakhi}

[00:11:26]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 1"}
So, uh before you got to California you heard the [?]

[00:11:37]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 1"}
Sorry you're right I do this all the time.

[00:11:39]
laughs

[00:11:40]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 1"}
Sorry

[00:11:41]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 1"}
When you got to California, sorry I'll get this right eventually, when you got to California was there Afghanistan music in California?

[00:11:50]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 2"}
Actually, yes.

[00:11:52]
{SPEAKER name="Speaker 2"}
There's a lot of Afghani people from like and and I think

40,000 yea

And, also my friends they were there. And that's why. And the weather.

[spanish].

It was a it was a very nice climate, but I should add to that because there are many vocalists, composers, singers, songwriters who fled in the late seventies and ended up in Fremont, California or New York or Virginia. So it was kind of a reconnection of sorts with with different artists. And that's kinda how I grew up playing in in I grew up playing in house parties, Afghan house parities. Like I was 5, 6, 7 years old and that was my first experience with Afghan music because there was no like international festival presenting Afghan traditional music and that's where I got my feet wet initially. And that's actually how [[??]] and I first met you know the [[??]] style.

[spanish]

[00:13:59]
Can you speak about the [[??]] a little bit. And she understands there might be two pieces to this [[??]] fill people in a bit.

Sure. So the tabla is a principle accompanying instrument of Afghan music, Indian music, Pakistani music and the tabla has its own language so every syllable that's played, every stroke that's played on the tabla, has a corresponding note. So on my left hand, you have and on the right hand you have So together, combined. Then you have compositions like fixed compositions, compositions we practiced, compositions that my ustad my [[??]] gave to me. So the style of [[??]] I learned was from Panjab Panjab School of Tabla which is also prevalent in Afghanistan. Ustad Hashem and his whole family also follow Punjab style. So it's really interesting, this fusion of styles of tabla.
[00:15:05]
[Spanish]
[00:15:55]

One more thing I would like to add to that is that to play with [[??]] it's very special because you have to listen to a lot of [[??]] and [[??]] music is very very diverse; many styles, so many styles. And [[??]] plays all the styles. Like any province, he can just go all night for you. Like from one city to the next city to the next city, right?
[laughter]
[spanish]
[00:17:02]

Yea so can you tell us a little bit about the [[??]], which is known as the national instrument of Afghanistan.

It is national instrument.

[mumbling]

Mhm yes, yes [[??]] yes, cierto. Can you tell us a little bit about the instrument, how it's played or how it's put together, what it looks like. So people on the radio might be able to imagine.

Ok uh

{SPEAKER name="unknown"}
[[Afghani]]

{SPEAKER name= "Homayonn Sakhi"}
The rabab is made out of mulberry tree branch or root

[[language?]]

And it's 3 pieces of wood. So you have the body, the neck, and the chest.

[spanish]

It's like a fred board.

[spanish]

And also skin instrument, skin is the reason goat skin the goat skin.

[spanish]

And also have 3 main string and 2 [[??]], and 15 [[??]] strings.

Tiene doce

2, 3, and 15.

3 main string?

Si, [[??]]. 2 [[??]] we call [[??]] like king strings.

[spanish]

And 15 [[??]] strings.

[spanish]

{SPEAKER name= Speaker Unknown}

Ah la musica. The music from Afghanistan is specifically what you do two instruments together, or is this something you you have really elevated to your style.

{SPEAKER name= Homayonn Sakhi}
Actually we a lot of different we have mahali, we call [[??]] and that's like 4 people that are playing together.

Mahali is the name of the group.

Mahali is the name of the style. So Mahal like for the people music for the people. And that's usually 4 piece ensemble.

[Spanish]

And also we have a different instrument like like tambor, [[??]], [[??]], [[??]], this is [[??]].

[Spanish]

[[??]] which literally means underarm drum.

[Spanish]

[Spanish]

This might be kind of a silly question, but do you have to play sitting down?

So yea traditionally these instruments are played, most comfortable sitting down. Like [[??]] has made a robab that he can play standing up. But, thats [[??]]. That's [[??]].

[Laughter]

[Spanish]

[Laughter]

Actually because because I start I was 10 years old, but that time people they said like you know what, this is like this is not for like young people this instrument. But this instrument is for like you know for older people. And that's why I said like you know what I have to play for young generation.

[Spanish]

[00:22:02]

And OK and also, I have like I have like right now I have more than like 16 students. They are all young. They are just like 15, 14, 18, 16.

{SPEAKER name="Speaker 1"}
16

{SPEAKER name=Homayonn Sakhi}
more than 16 years. More than 16, yea.

[spanish]

[spanish]

Ok, in short, you mentioned how there is sometime perception of age difference. What were you doing, are you doing anything special to involve young people in this music? For example, do you ever put any English words or any any other musical influences into your music to attract young to appeal to young people?

[Afghani]

Actually