Marc Tiley’s ANDA UNION: FROM THE STEPPES TO THE CITY charts several journeys – personal, collective and cultural – providing a unique view of Mongolia through the experiences of a group of young musicians.

Underscored by the otherworldly music of Anda Union themselves, the documentary follows the band as they venture out of their modern city environment, back to rural Mongolia where many of their families still live. Here, out in the grasslands, we witness the physical and cultural reconnection of the younger Mongol generation as they share stories, food, drink and music with a collection of relatives and communities.

…preserving the sound and storytelling of past generations through interpretation and performance for the modern world…

Filming and editing with unobtrusive sensitivity, the beauty of sweeping landscapes coupled with the enveloping hospitality of the band’s hosts offers a limited but thoroughly engaging window into the meeting of new and old Mongolian life. Cutting between their countryside journey and life back in the city, a series of vignettes illuminates the craft behind the traditional instruments, the practising that belies the musicianship and the personal lives of the group. It is a nod towards the cultural synthesis that Anda Union’s music represents: preserving the sound and storytelling of past generations through interpretation and performance for the modern world.

Although there is perhaps no powerful sense of narrative over the course of the documentary, the footage of the band performing their music gives the film a sense of purpose. From the frenetic, howling stampede of noise in Ten Thousand Galloping Horses to the jolly folk song Sumaro, these excerpts indicate the success of Anda Union’s mission to preserve and perform ancestral music with authenticity and flair.

Towards the end of the film we watch the culmination of Urgen’s journey as he stands outside his fiancé’s gate in full Mongolian ceremonial dress. He beckons her with a song in a ritual that will culminate in their wedding. Similarly, the directors of Anda Union beckon us into the world of Mongolia with music. It is a charming device, and the result is really rather captivating.

httpvh://youtu.be/9Up-LOg6GZE