Timeless Box Set

Leave it to Ma Dukes, the mother of J Dilla, to sum up the sentiment of something so large it seemed incondensable: “Music is universal. It doesn’t matter what language you speak, it doesn’t matter where you’re from. But it exudes a love that we can all understand.” These words, spoken kindly, gently, and in terrific Ma Dukes style to a sold out crowd in Los Angeles last February, best describe Timeless.

Conceived by the production company Mochilla’s double force of photographer/director (and Wax Poetics alumnus) B+ and partner Eric Coleman, the Timeless concert series paid tribute to three figures who have all contributed to hip-hop in unique and resonating ways. A trio of concerts held in February and March 2009 saw the music of Ethiopia’s Mulatu Astatke, Brazil’s Arthur Verocai, and Dilla performed by full orchestras. Presumably due to the project’s sheer size, these events were all one-offs, but Mochilla had the foresight to document the electricity of these performances on three DVDs, comprising the Timeless box set.

“The goal was to expose L.A., and then the world, to music that hadn’t been heard live properly before,” explains B+. “Also, we wanted to expand the dialogue around the historical function of hip-hop. Mulatu and Verocai have had a huge influence on the hip-hop we love and we have never had the chance to celebrate that. And Dilla—well, to have his music expressed in this way to us was a super no-brainer. The emotional power of his music liberated through an orchestra is stunning.”

The Suite for Ma Dukes concert was the second in the Timeless series, with the outpouring of collective love so overwhelming it quantifiably spills onto film. Shot in black and white, the DVD captures the spirit of that night, and features Bilal, Dwele, Talib Kweli, and Dilla’s brother, Illa J, all accompanied by a sixty-piece orchestra performing Dilla’s joints as reimagined by multi-instrumentalist Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. The event also included interpretations of the Detroit producer’s beats into chamber music, which first appeared with the release of Atwood-Ferguson and Carlos Nino’s strings, brass, and reeds version of “Nag Champa.” “At the time, we weren’t thinking anything consciously other than celebrating Dilla in whatever way was most sincere to us,” Atwood-Ferguson explains of the concept’s impetus.

Almost everyday in January and February 2009, Atwood-Ferguson worked long hours to write some nineteen arrangements in addition to the five he already had (four of which can be found on the Suite for Ma Dukes EP) in preparation for the concert. Then he assembled the Suite For Ma Dukes Orchestra by approaching friends in his circle of accomplished musicians, some of whom had never heard of Dilla before. The close connection they built with the producer’s music, however, can be felt through the orchestra’s almost collective wide-mouthed smile. “An expansive feeling imbued with openness and grace was felt,” Atwood-Ferguson reflects. “The experience of Dilla transcended music and touched our lives as human beings living together at this time.” Plus, you will never see a sixty-piece orchestra jam out the way the Suite For Ma Dukes Orchestra does on “Untitled/Fantastic,” or the Dwele-fronted and previously unrehearsed (but incredibly on-point) “Angel.”

Atwood-Ferguson believes that the genius behind Dilla’s work is the sheer joy that saturates every level of his music. The heartfelt nature of his beats allowed them to transition almost seamlessly into what seems like a format far-removed from hip-hop. Another element that translates no matter what form Dilla’s music takes is the essence and soul of their maker. “People really responded to the spiritual nature of the music,” Atwood-Ferguson reflects. “It really touched a lot of people in a special way. We all have been the participants in this Dilla endeavor.” B+ echoes similar thoughts on Suite for Ma Dukes. “Many tears were shed on that one. Hardcore people who hadn’t cried in a long time cried on that one.” And, just as Ma Dukes perfectly summed up the experience once before, she did it again: “It’s outstanding, it’s incredible, and it’s love.”

Timeless is out now.

Read about Mulatu Astatke in Issue 14 of Wax Poetics.

Read about Arthur Verocai in Issue 36 of Wax Poetics.

Read about J Dilla in Issue 17 of Wax Poetics (if you can find it!).