Using a handpan, Faizan manages to bring out sounds you can only imagine, producing a sense of chill while reminding the listener of a steel drum, and sometimes of a synthesiser. You’ll find it hard to believe it’s not an electronic instrument; indeed it’s not powered by electricity at all, but rather the most analogue of all instruments – the hands.
One of the world’s oldest instruments, the handpan teases, soothes, inspires and invigorates, and in Faizan’s hands it becomes a thing of eerie beauty, and when accompanied by the Amadeus Electric Quartet on his new single, ‘Aether’, he entrances, bewitches, and enthrals his listeners.
Faizan is from the Maldives, one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and so it was no big leap to realise that his gorgeous track would require an equally gorgeous location to shoot his music video. Recorded at the Saii Lagoon Resort, the crystal blue water becomes one of the stars of the clip, which sees Faizan framed by the sea as he plays his handpan. Fire, air, and earth are also represented, with the members of the Amadeus Electric Quartet presented as conjuring cosmic forces. Altogether they share the message of balanced and harmonious music, which wouldn’t be possible if any of the elements were out of sync.
Watch the video for ‘Aether’ below. You can find Faizan online on his official website.
