If orchestras were still always about the groove, then Adebayo Olalekan is at peace with himself knowing his manipulative fingers have been more devout than expected. The Nigerian double bassist has built up a solid mastery of pacing, lining up a streak of stellar renditions that serve a fine toast to classical music.
A fine illustration of Olalekan’s maestro is the unforgettable evening from 2018 where Africa and the West united between his fingers in a classic show of classic music traditions. Right there at St Stephen’s Cathedral, in Walbrook, Olalekan, alongside the Nok Orchestra, redefined tension and release, as compositions like ‘African Mandè suites’, ‘Invocation’, ‘Jairaby’, among others, breathed into noble denouements, albeit less dramatic as one would expect. The rendition of ‘Joromi’, a celebrated highlife track of vintage Nigeria, originally created by the late Sir Victor Uwaifo, charged up the performance leading up to a safe landing, and Olalekan’s glide, dribbling through repetitions and tone changes, helps clear the tarmac.
Through the years, Olalekan has surfed on these sonic seas with a slight radicality that gives his work a different feel. Particularly, Olalekan’s rendition at the last African Concert Series, in conjunction with the BBC World Service and acclaimed pianist Rebecca Omordia (Nigeria/UK/Romania), at Enfield, reflects the depths of diversity of African classical music. Alongside the Dulcis Ensemble, Olalekan’s control of rhythm and dynamic helped stirr the nostalgia in renditions like ‘Omo Pupa’, ‘Rivovara’, by late Nigerian songbird of the ‘80s, Edna Ogholi.
Olaleken stretched this cultural exchange crusade even wider in his 2022 collaboration with Russian-British composer Gabriel Prokofiev, which was a fusion of Electronic and Experimental music and classical music.
Another highlight of Olalekan’s musical odyssey was his collaboration with the Chineke! Orchestra, when he participated as a Double Bassist at the Dulwich College residency of April 2022.
Soon after, one of the most touching moments in Olalekan’s repertoire unfolded as he, along with members of the HACS Philharmonic Orchestra, presented an original composition titled ‘The Procession of a Triumphant Jubilee.’
Crafted as a tribute to the late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, this heartfelt piece echoed emotions and sentiments during the Queen’s Jubilee Celebration Concert at Springfield Park on the 2nd of June 2022.
The performance resonated deeply with the audience, reflecting Olalekan’s ability to evoke profound emotions through his music. And his ability to achieve dissonance, as smoothly as he does continues to drown his artistry in an infinite cesspool of catharsis.
