Vancouver recording artist Mohamed Assani is no stranger to the sacredness of the sitar. On the heels of releasing the transformative 7-track album Wayfinder, Assani wields the popular Indian string instrument to craft a tribute to mothers all over on his new single, “Lullaby for Guli.”
The tranquil music video begins with a mother singing to her son on the comforting sands of a serene beach just before a dedication is made to Assani’s mother and all mothers worldwide. An impassioned Assani appears onscreen strumming the strings of the sitar in a vast array of settings that flow in and out of natural and manmade environments.
Throughout the nearly 8-minute musical retreat, Assani refashions the sitar from a bellowing flirtation with classical music to a full-on guitar rock session, all enveloped by the exquisite influences of Indian music. One of the most delightful moments of the visual comes when Assani closes his eyes clearly overwhelmed by the power of the sitar and his incredible gift of playing it.
Connect with the Genre-Defying Sitarist and Composer
“I wrote this song in loving memory of my late mother, as well as in honor of all mothers,” Assani said. “A child’s first experience of music is in the form of a lullaby sung to them by their mothers. This was definitely the case for me. My mother sang me lullabies and told me wonderful stories — stories that shaped me and how I viewed the world.”
The visual concludes with intercuts of a young version of Assani and his mother morphing into different stages of their lives together. Adham Shaikh, an Emmy and Juno-nominated music producer, produced the song, while Assani is composer of the original work. The music video for “Lullaby for Guli” is filmed and produced by Pool Service Productions.
Watch the Official Music Video for “Lullaby for Guli”
When it comes to the sitar, Assani is a traditionalist with a modern edge. He has been formally trained in classical music as a graduate of Dartington College of Arts in England, drawing from World, Indian/Pakistani, and Western genres. For his album, Wayfinder, a title defined as an indicator that aids people in navigation, Assani concocts a recipe of musicality that fearlessly flows from classical to electronic, Middle Eastern to jazz.
The story of how the album was made is suitable for a captivating film. Assani traveled to the deep rainforest in the Kootenay Mountains of B.C., Canada where he would be surrounded by the simplicity of nature and wild life. There, he would create original music for the album over a series of nights that clocked between midnight and the early morning hours.
Listen to the Full Album, ‘Wayfinder’
His dedication and hard work is exponentially represented with each track listing, seemingly inspired by his feelings of “Awakening” and “Serendipity,” in cohort with his daily interactions and activities. Wayfinder, arguably Assani’s magnum opus, is that quintessential soundtrack to life in all of its buoyancy, or otherwise, spoken through the dynamic prose of the sitar.
“Lullaby for Guli” and Wayfinder are available now on streaming music platforms.
