Iona Lane and Ranjana Ghatak are brought together through their love of singing. Combining music from both of their backgrounds, they create a beautiful soup of ethereal goodness.
Iona Lane delivered her masterful debut Hallival in 2022. Entirely self-penned, it was a remarkable album – ‘a poetic gift…’
Across this album, the Leeds-based folk singer delivers her poetic songs with the utmost care and attention. Subtle musical touches and contemplative warm vocals combine to make this one of the most rewarding albums of the year.
Alex Gallacher, Folk Radio
She has just announced a new collaborative EP, titled Cove (out on 4th August – pre-order), that shows another side to Iona, one that branches out into music from the British folk tradition and beyond. She is reunited with Ranjana Ghatak, an Indian Classical and Devotional singer (she also plays the Tanpura & Harmonium) whom she first met on Making Tracks, a remarkable residency that we’ve previously covered on Folk Radio.
Making Tracks is based around two central themes: musical roots and environmental engagement. We’re interested in showcasing diverse music from around the world and believe that the collaborative creation and sharing of music is an ideal vehicle for bridging cultural divides. We’re also interested in environmentally engaged artists working with soundscape field recordings or sound art. Our environmental focus, founded on the concept of ‘reverence’ for the natural world, is two-sided in its approach. One side is practical, for example, developing strategies to minimise the carbon footprint of touring; the other is artistic – how we (as musicians in our case) creatively respond to issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss and embrace the imaginative power that we have to inspire connections with nature.
Ranjana studied under Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, considered to be one of the proverbial figures of Indian classical music. Some of you may recall that, last year, following visa issues, she stepped in to replace Suhail Yusuf Khan of Yorkston Thorne Khan, who toured as Yorkston Thorne Ghatak during May/June 2022.
It was after this tour that Iona first met Ghatak:
“Back in September 2022, I had the wonderful experience of meeting Ranjana Ghatak, an Indian Classical and Devotional singer, at the Making Tracks residency we took part in. We knew straight away we wanted to collaborate, and under autumnal skies and to the sound of bird song, we worked on music for the first time, and it was magical. We weren’t sure how our voices would work together, but as soon as we started, we knew we’d hit something special.
“After the residency, we decided to continue to collaborate and create something from the process…”
Combining music from both of their backgrounds, they create a beautiful soup of ethereal goodness. The first single, Vaishnava Jana To / Quiet Joys of Brotherhood, is out now and available on streaming services.
“A mesmerising collaboration forging new and unexpected musical ground”
MERLYN DRIVER
The EP will be released digitally on 4th August. It was recorded and mixed by Andy Bell at Heriot Toun in the Borders back in April and mixed by Sam Proctor.