Eastern Flowers in Bolivia

When the album ‘Mineralle’ was being promoted here in Germany and Europe, the band was spread over three continents: pianist Jarry Singla in Bolivia, bassist Christian Ramond in Germany, and myself in Bangladesh. Journalists, from the print media and from radio, didn’t have it easy trying to locate us via emails and phone calls for interviews!

Jarry decided to get the band together in Bolivia for a tour. His efforts paid off and Christian and I flew to La Paz vis Bogota to perform at three Festijazz concerts in La Paz, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. We also conducted workshops for kids at the German School in Achumani, La Paz. The audiences at all the venues were fantastic and our music was well-received.

Bolivia is a fascinating country with its huge indigenous population and its awe-inspiring natural surroundings. We were based most of the time in La Paz, some 3500m above sea level. But we had time to take trips into the mountains, visiting the foothills of Mount Illimani, spending an afternoon walking around and trying to imbibe the spirit of Pachamama, Mother Earth! Being so high up in the rarefied atmosphere of the mountains was quite a unique experience. Above a small selection of photos I shot using my iPhone5.