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There are guitar players, and then there are
guitar players. Fareed Haque is of the later category, a virtuoso. Fareed
enjoys a career that spans the spectrum of musical styles. And to say
that he kills it on the six-string, would be an immense understatement:
he plays acoustic and electric guitar, sitar and even plays a hybrid
guitar/sitar.
The Fareed Haque Group, equipped with a DJ
and a tabla player, has been described as a "tantric meditation." With
diverse cultural and musical influences, Fareed Haque Group is opening
new doors with a completely fresh approach to cosmic music that grooves.
Moving easily between jazz and classical guitar,
Fareed's versatility has created a demand for him with prominent jazz
and classical artists including Medeski, Martin and Wood, Sting, Joe
Zawinul, Cassandra Wilson, Leste Bowie, Dave Holland, Robert Walter,
Carl Denson, Kahil el Zabar, Defunckt, and Ramsey Lewis. Born in 1963
to Pakistani father and Chilean mother, extensive travels, especially
long stays in Spain, France, Iran, Pakistan and Chile, exposed Haque
to different musics from a very early age. This natural eclecticism has
become the hallmark of Fareed's music.
Cosmic Hug is an unique combination of world, jazz, and jam. Earthy,
vital, breezy, electric, and truly eclectic, Cosmic Hug defies easy categorization.
The Fareed Haque Group have a sound that will appeal to many while compromising
to no one. The Cosmic Hug CD also includes a bonus interactive section
including an interview with Fareed Haque discussing his guitar techniques,
as well as clips of the Fareed Haque Group performing live.
Around early the 90’s Fareed Haque Group
was formed by Fareed to explore and incorporate all of his various musical
influences into one compositional platform; to play music that can spring
from and weave through jazz, classical, Latin, funk; as well as African
and Indian music sensitivities, modern, hip-hop, trance and folk grooves.
Since 2000 Fareed Haque Group has been one of the most active and cutting
edge bands in the jamband an improvised music scene. They have recorded
and toured extensively around the country, creating a very unique presence
in various musical festivals including the High Sierra Mountain Music
Festival 2003.
In 2001, Fareed co-founded the jam super-group
Garaj Mahal; and since has joined George Brooks' group Summit, featuring
Zakir Hussein and Steve Smith; as well as recording and touring with
the Fareed Haque Group.
He has performed all of the major guitar concertos,
is an active transcriber of baroque as well as South American music and
has had numerous modern works dedicated to him.

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