Browse by Artist: KALHOR AND BROOKLYN RIDER, KAYHAN

Artist:	KALHOR AND BROOKLYN RIDER, KAYHAN
Title:	Silent City
Label:	WORLD VILLAGE (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$19.00
Catalog #:	WORLD 468078CD

"Iranian kamancheh (spike fiddle) virtuoso and composer Kayhan Kalhor first encountered the string quartet Brooklyn Rider while participating in Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Project. Silent City was born of a growing friendship between Kalhor and the group. Reinterpreting classical and folkloric sources in a freewheeling, impassioned manner was already second nature for all concerned but, invigorated by shared connections between their respective traditions, the five musicians, along with Jeffrey Beecher (bass) and Mark Suter (percussion), found themselves communicating on a fresh and thrilling new wavelength. All four works on this recording were composed by the participants. The album opens with the Icarus-like, Zoroastrian imagery of 'Ascending Bird' -- a feverish, searing take on a tale ancient beyond recall that remains perpetually relevant. Although 'Silent City' was written to commemorate the Kurdish village of Hallabja in Iraqi Kurdistan, Kalhor dedicated the piece to cities throughout history 'destroyed by humanity, war, and natural disaster.' 'Parvaz,' another variant of the 'soaring bird' image, features a setar (a 4-string Iranian lute with movable frets) that, along with the bowed instruments, depicts frantically beating wings striving toward the light. On the final selection, the transcendent romance of 'Beloved, Do Not Let Me Be Discouraged' inspires the participants to reach deep inside as many and one, rising to an ecstatic culmination of shared passion and imagination."

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