“If music be the food of love, play on,” said the Bard. The three American diplomats who performed at the Napa auditorium were prime examples of this saying.

They sang and played their instruments with abandon and were accompanied by Pakistani musicians, Aamir Zaki and Louis ‘Gumby’ Pinto, along with a few other performers from Napa. It was entertainment at its best.

There was also delightful fusion music between Gul Muhammad on the santoor (a stringed instrument native to Kashmir with origins in Persia) and Wren Elhai and Elijah Lawrence on the violin and guitar. Cultural attaché Phillip Assis sang golden oldies. Wren Elhai, who works primarily on human rights violations and socio-political issues in Balochistan, mainly performed American folk and bluegrass music, thereby introducing these genres to local audiences. Elijah Lawrence, a consular officer who also a self-taught musician, played different stringed instruments and sang one of his own original songs.

With three US diplomats performing at the Napa auditorium, it makes one wonder who’s holding the fort!

The performance took place at a signing ceremony between the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) President Zia Mohyeddin and the University of Texas represented by the US Consul General Michael Dodmon, for a three-year partnership in providing training in various musical genres to students and teachers at the Pakistani institute.

Images on Sunday spoke to the diplomats on taking time out for music from their hectic work schedule.

The American musicians with Arshad Mahmud (C), Aamir Zaki, Louis ‘Gumby’ Pinto and others

You have been here for over two months in an environment that doesn’t have much music. How does it feel?

Wren: Every time you move to a new country you have to adjust. I was in Russia recently and played with two bands as there is a lot of music in Moscow. It has been challenging to find that kind of music here but Elija was here and we met Gumby and later on other musicians, which has helped to overcome that problem. It’s also an opportunity to hear a new kind of music and learn from the experience.

Political issues and music — how do they go together?

Wren: Music makes it easier to work on political issues because people like to talk about music which has a universal language. Knowing the traditions and culture of others helps bring people together. Through music we can understand so many things.

You learnt to play the violin and sang in musical theatre performances at a young age. Is music in your genes?

Wren: I grew up with music and learnt to play the violin from the age of five. My parents are musicians and my father holds a Masters degree in piano composition, but they took up science careers, so you can combine music activities with a diverse career. I took voice lessons in school and college and sang for theatre performances so that I could improve my singing. I was in a band in college singing popular and beat box music which comes from hip hop (making drum and other sounds with the mouth without instruments). The ’80s was hip hop time and everyone did beat box music. This is in the genre of A cappella music and it’s still popular.

Was it easy to learn the cultural sound of five different countries? Has it added to your style of singing?

Wren: It wasn’t easy at all, but learning the techniques helped to understand it somewhat.

The inventiveness of hip hop and A cappella led me to be interested in the traditional music of other countries. Music can be a participatory thing — when you do classical music it takes time to master it and is not popular with everyone. When I learnt folk music in the five countries I went to I noticed that everyone took interest in this type of music, thus it is known as participatory music. So after completing my fellowship I got interested in the folk music of America, especially bluegrass music which originated in the southern states, using violin, fiddle and mandolin. Bluegrass became popular in the 1950s on radio and TV and is still going strong.

You are part Taiwanese, any interest in that music?

Wren: No, I haven’t thought about doing that kind of music so far.

You are a singer/songwriter and play different instruments. What is your preference?

Elija: I enjoy writing songs, I’ve written 30 to 40 but I’m shy about playing them. I did a song with Wren and he loved it and that boosted my confidence. We have recorded two songs with Gumby. I wrote my first song at 15 in high school, so it’s been a long but shy love affair.

I play the guitar and as my father is Hawaiian I play the ukulele which is similar to a guitar. I can also play the banjo. Playing with Wren has inspired me to pursue music seriously and after meeting Gumby and Amir Zaki, music has become more interesting now.

Have the music and instruments of Pakistan interested you?

Elija: The music here is interesting and I simply love qawwali and ghazal. We had an American qawwali group here recently and they were great. Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was brilliant and it was through him that we discovered qawwali.

Wren: I bought a santoor and I am interested in it as Balochistan is my field of expertise. I collect instruments and have a menagerie of stringed instruments including guitar, mandolin and now santoor. It’s just getting out of control. Sarangi is very difficult so I don’t plan to buy and play it, but I love it otherwise.

You haven’t tried playing the sitar?

Elija: I haven’t because I like hearing it and enjoy it immensely at ghazal programmes, its sound is incredible. You need to practice it for years to play it well. I love Mehdi Hasan’s voice which is soft and mellifluous and suits sitar music. His songs are just beautiful.

How is it that there are so many musicians in the Consulate?

Wren/Elija: Our foreign service encourages everything from culture to music which translates into eclectic interests. It’s just a coincidence that we are a few musicians here together and as we don’t step out too much being foreigners, we started playing music regularly to pass the time, and our Consul General is a music buff so we have regular music get-togethers. Philip, who sang so well at the Napa programme, has now left Karachi for another assignment.

How do you see the music scene here?

Elija: There are a lot of talented musicians here, but there aren’t enough opportunities or channels for nurturing the talent as there are in the States and Europe, which is sad as so much talent is being wasted.

Wren: There is a thirst for music here but there are hardly any clubs or institutions here to help. There aren’t many schools either that encourage music classes which helps in honing talent.

How was your ‘fusion’ experience at Napa?

Elija: I was nervous when playing fusion music with Gul Mohammad on the santoor but it worked out beautifully. Thoughtful fusion does work. Not every instrument gels so you have to be careful in choosing them.

Wren: To fuse music one has to be careful as there can be discord in music. Melodic styles of different instruments can be so different, so one has to be careful in choosing the right sounding music when bringing them together. But we definitely look forward to playing with our Napa colleagues and students in the future.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, September 21st, 2014