MOCAfest 2015: Caravan of Praise jams to promote love of The Beloved

Creators of soulful folk tunes performed from the heart, Caravan of Praise is a musical collective from Malaysia. They will be performing at this year’s MOCAfest, part of the 11th World Islamic Economic Forum, held in Kuala Lumpur from November 3–5, 2015. Hot off their release of new single Jangan Bimbang (“Don’t Worry”, watch video below), the group is back in the studio recording another single titled Panggilan Mu (“Your Call”).

Prior to their appearance at MOCAfest, Caravan of Praise will feature heavily at the upcoming AOR Festival from 28–30 August in Alor Setar, Kedah where they will be managing the stage each night with invited artists, musicians and friends.

The group’s director and manager, Mahdar Tahir, sat down with Aquila Style to discuss the band’s approach to music and spirituality.

Aquila Style: Caravan of Praise has a diverse range of musicians from various backgrounds. How did the band form?

Mahdar Tahir: The band was formed very organically. Caravan of Praise started as a concept, and at the start Caravan of Praise invited artists who fell within this concept and who were able to deliver the message. A few of these artists loved the concept and the spiritual nature of it and wanted to be a permanent fixture of Caravan of Praise. From that we eventually and organically formed the Caravan of Praise band that we are today.

MOCAfest brings together artists from around the world who have a variety of backgrounds and disciplines. What value do you see in such creative sessions? Has Caravan of Praise ever collaborated with other artists?

Such gatherings and collaborations of artists are invaluable, not only in the creative and performance aspects, but more significant in the human connection that is the foundation of cultural connection and appreciation. We live in a borderless digital world that has brought people closer than ever before, yet there’s still a lot to be desired in the level of cultural understanding. Music and creative arts have the power and capacity to bring people to a common understanding, interest, love and cause. Young artists are ambassadors for today’s youth. Their connection can be a catalyst to a larger cultural, racial and spiritual and community connection.

Caravan of Praise has collaborated with several artists including DEBU, a fusion Sufi musical group from Indonesia, Caits Meissner, a spoken word artist from New York, and Marques Young, a versatile trombonist jazz musician from New York. Caravan of Praise also regularly attends local music festivals and jamming sessions where other musicians join us on stage and just “plug and play”. Amongst the sessions are KL Downtown Music Community and Ampang Jazz monthly jam session.

“Promoting the love of The Beloved” and “Come join the Caravan” are two important concepts behind Caravan of Praise. Could you tell us where these came from and how they guide you?

“Come Join The Caravan” is the group’s slogan. “Promoting the love of The Beloved” is an element in the concept, and it carries a deeper meaning. This came from the reaction that Muslims always give whenever there are movies, drawings or statements insulting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The reaction projects the frustration, anger and rage that generally exist amongst Muslims [who feel offended by such content]. However, we believe as Muslims we have not been successful in showing the world who Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is, much less extend his love for all people. Stemming from this, Caravan of Praise endeavours to show all the love he has for all, extending it through our music and ourselves.

To achieve this objective we are guided by it in the way that we try our best to play music that is easily acceptable to a larger and more varied audience. We also strive to bring the universal message of love of people and Earth, yet not totally sacrificing the more spiritual message to Muslim listeners. In order to spread love of the beloved, we must love what he loves, and he loves all: people, animals and Earth. That is what we endeavor to promote through our music, behaviour and relationship to all that are around us.

In July you played at a charity iftar event to support Rohingya refugees in Malaysia. How was the experience?

The iftar was organised by Caravan of Praise in response to an invitation by Talent Lounge, a very close and strong venue partner. Caravan of Praise agreed to the iftar on condition that the food served was basic meals and that every purchase of a seat would include a meal of the same value to a refugee. Alhamdulillah, this new concept was well accepted by the patrons. We had around 40 refugees who came for the iftar on behalf of the refugee community. We managed to raise a significant amount for the beneficiary, for whom we also performed at their refugee fundraising bazaar in May this year.

One of the main yardsticks of how good our events go is in the vibe that each one of us feels during and after the performance. We always keep our intention in check so that we keep it and our objective tight. The iftar was for us to give something during Ramadan, as we feel that this is a way for us to give/Sadaqah during the blessed month.

But beyond that, we also wanted to bring back iftar events back to how iftar is supposed to be: having basic food to break fast and providing food for others to break fast. Hence, we named the event “Basically Buka Puasa” (buka puasa means iftar in Malay). Alhamdulillah, from the feedback of the team, venue partner, their staff and all who attended, it met its objective. People who came were very accepting of the basic course of food, the mingling with the refugees and also the entertainment value and spirit from the Caravan of Praise repertoire. The whole spirit of this iftar was to return to how the Prophet taught us to embrace the spirit of Ramadan, and from it how beautiful his character and practices are.

Your music is very spiritual and heartfelt. What sorts of fans does it attract to your live performances?

We experience different crowds at different events, from skinheads to elders. Our crowd is mainly Malay Muslims, but we do get other races as well. As we also cover popular “evergreen” numbers, we get to attract the various age groups that resonate well with those songs. We also play traditional Malay joget numbers that always appeal to most Malaysians.

What can MOCAfest attendees expect from Caravan of Praise this November?

We will try to give a short but solid performance. We hope to leave the attendees wanting more. The benchmarks for Caravan of Praise performances are to get the audience to feel the vibes and leave feeling good. So beyond the technical excellence in music and sound, as well as the tight musical choreography, what matters is that the music touches the hearts of those who listen. We want them to walk away feeling good about the world, life and the love in it.

Interested in joining the Caravan? Learn more about Caravan of Praise on Facebook, Instagram or their website

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