The Irish Tour of Quatrain

14 Jan 2010

Galway Jazz – Click to enlarge.

A project in four parts from Francesco Turrisi’s Tarab Ensemble hits the intimate Druid Theatre Galway on the 5th of Febuary.
 
February – April/May – July – November

February Tour Dates
Friday 5th February |  Druid Theatre,  Galway | Book Online at www.tht.ie or call 091 569 777
Saturday 6th February|  Mermaid Arts Centre, Bray |  Book Online at www.mermaidartscentre.ie or call 01 272 4030
Sunday 7th February| Triskel @ Jurys, Cork | Book Online at www.triskelartscentre.ie or call 021 427 2022
 
“Some of the most enchanting music I have heard this year.”-  The Irish Times
“One can only hope that a group as good as this gets the wider exposure it surely deserves.”- All About Jazz
 
Tarab

Francesco Turrisi - accordion, harmonium, percussion
Nick Roth - saxophones, flutes | Emer Mayock-flutes, whistles, pipes, fiddle
Robbie Harris - bodhran, percussion | Kate Ellis – cello
 
With Special Guests

5-7 February – From Iran, percussionist Pedram Khavar-Zamini (tombak)
April/May: From Palestine, Haytham Safia – oud
July: From Bulgaria, Theodossii Spassov - kaval
November: From Greece, Savina Yannatou – voice
 
Francesco Turrisi presents this latest evolution of his Tarab ensemble, which has become eloquent in its linking of modal jazz to traditional music from across Europe. Over the course of 2010, the group takes on a major project and will come together as ensemble in residence in Bray’s Mermaid Arts Centre.  They’ll devise new music over four cycles, each with a very special guest artist, starting in the spring with Iranian tombak master Pedram Khavar- Zamini and Palestinian oud player Haytham Safia, with a July visit from Bulgarian virtuoso of the Kaval Theodossii Spassov, and an appearance by the masterful Greek singer Savina Yannatou to round off proceedings next November.
 
For his part Turrisi, a Milan native, has made a real impression since moving to Ireland, bringing a fresh perspective informed by his background in Italian baroque music and jazz piano.  In Tarab he performs on accordion and frame drums, and convincingly bridges traditional music from around the Mediterranean in a band that also includes saxophonist Nick Roth and cellist Kate Ellis. Their jazz and classical backgrounds are finely countered by traditional flautist Emer Mayock who, along with percussionist Robbie Harris, brings an innate understanding of melody and form in Irish music.  Turrisi directs proceedings with taste and subtlety throughout, deftly balancing these powerful elements to harmonious effect.
 
More about Tarab from Francesco Turrisi

The Arabic word "Tarab" describes a state of ecstasy and surrender one enters while listening to music with body and soul. When I created the ensemble Tarab in 2007 I imagined a connection between my southern Italian and Mediterranean origins and my musical journey and experience as a jazz musician. Following a successful Deis funded project in 2008 called Diwan Eireann, Tarab has evolved into a project that aims to create an imaginary link between aesthetic elements of Mediterranean music and the Irish instrumental and vocal tradition. Starting from common elements such as similar instrumentation, ornamentation and performance, Tarab develops new musical language based on improvisation, instrumental virtuosity and exciting rhythms.
 
About Pedram Khavar -Zamini

Pedram Khavar-Zamini was born in 1975, in Tehran, Iran. He learned to play the tombak, the distinctive Iranian goblet drum, from Masters Kamyar Mohabbat and Bahman Rajabi. Among the most dynamic of the new generation of Iranian musicians, Pedram has written extensively on Persian percussion and is a founder of the percussion group Varashan. Since 2002, he has performed regularly with ECM artist and fellow Iranian Kayhan Kalhor, and is also a frequent collaborator with Ross Daly, most memorably in the Irish born, Crete based lyra player’s Iris ensemble. Pedram currently lives in Amsterdam.
 
About Haytham Safia

Haytham Safia is in essence a classical Arabic musician, but his compositions and music are influenced by other musical styles such as Persian, Balkan and jazz. Born in Jerusalem in 1980, his passion for the oud started early, and throughout his early twenties he toured extensively with The Galili Dance Co. In 2004 he performed as a soloist with the Holland Symphonia in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the city he now calls home. Widely acknowledged as a rigorous and innovative player, he has broken new ground with the role of the oud in non- Arabic music, heard to dramatic effect on his albums No Blues and Blossom.
 
About Theodossii Spassov

The kaval, an eight-hole wooden shepherd’s flute, is one of the oldest instruments in Europe, rich in tonal and technical possibilities, especially in the hands of Bulgaria’s Theodosii Spassov.  He has developed a unique, highly virtuosic style that brilliantly marries its traditional roots with jazz, fusion and classical music. For over two decades Theodosii has toured all over Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Australia, Canada and United States, including three memorable years with Riverdance. He is a Grammy winner for his work with the celebrated Bulgarian women’s choir Le Mystere Des Voix Bulgares, has also released four ground breaking albums and has been a contributor to soundtracks for Ennio Morricone. His jazz credentials are equally impressive, and recent collaborations include Wynton Marsalis and Rabih Abou Khalil.
 
About Savina Yannatou

A leading interpreter of baroque, renaissance and early musics, ECM recording artist Savina Yannatou is one of the most respected singers in Greek music. She is known not only for her mastery of older, formal repertoire but also for her experience in avant-garde jazz. Since 1983, she has been a member of the Early Music Workshop of Athens, performing at festivals across Greece as well as further afield, including acclaimed performances in Ireland with here group Primavera En Salonika. Her dedication to exploring and expanding her voice as an instrument and as a means of communication has led her to the Sephardic folk songs of the Jewish Diaspora, once the strongest community in the cosmopolitan port of Thessaloniki. This Jewish music of the Balkans has been renewed and modified through Savina’s artful vocal experimentation and subtle treatment. It’s an eloquent statement on her Greek roots and the culture that down the millennia has mediated the oriental and occidental worlds.
 
 
Listings Information for February Tour
 
Listings and Event Information January 2010
 
Date:           Friday 5th February 2010
Event:         Quatrain – a four part music journey with Tarab
Info:            Multitalented, multicultural music maestro Francesco Turrisi has assembled Tarab for a year of Irish Tours with special master guests from the best of the world’s percussion, oud, kaval and voice over 2010. February guest is Iranian percussionist Pedram Khavarzamini who will merge the deep sound of the tombak- an Iranian goblet drum, with the accordion and frame drums of Turrisi in a night that bridges all cultures musically. Tarab also feature the talents of Yurodny leader Nick Roth on saxophone, Kate Ellis on cello, Emer Mayock on flute and percussionist Robbie Harris.
Time:           8pm
Price:           €15/12
Venue:         Druid Theatre, Druid Lane, Galway
To Book:      Town Hall Theatre Galway - 091 569 777 Online: www.tht.ie
Email:          info@improvisedmusic.ie
Website       www.improvisedmusic.ie
 
 
Date:            Saturday 6th February 2010
Event:          Quatrain – a four part music journey with Tarab
Info:             Multitalented, multicultural music maestro Francesco Turrisi has assembled Tarab for a year of Irish Tours with special master guests from the best of the world’s percussion, oud, kaval and voice over 2010. February guest is Iranian percussionist Pedram Khavarzamini who will merge the deep sound of the tombak- an Iranian goblet drum, with the accordion and frame drums of Turrisi in a night that bridges all cultures musically. Tarab also feature the talents of Yurodny leader Nick Roth on saxophone, Kate Ellis on cello, Emer Mayock on flute and percussionist Robbie Harris.
Time:           8pm
Price:           €18/16
Venue:         Mermaid Arts Centre, Main Street, Bray, Co. Wicklow.
To Book:      Book Online at www.mermaidartscentre.ie or call 01 272 4030
Email:          info@improvisedmusic.ie
Website       www.improvisedmusic.ie
 
Date:            Sunday 7th February, 2010
Event:          Quatrain – a four part music journey with Tarab
Info:             Multitalented, multicultural music maestro Francesco Turrisi has assembled Tarab for a year of Irish Tours with special master guests from the best of the world’s percussion, oud, kaval and voice over 2010. February guest is Iranian percussionist Pedram Khavarzamini who will merge the deep sound of the tombak- an Iranian goblet drum, with the accordion and frame drums of Turrisi in a night that bridges all cultures musically. Tarab also feature the talents of Yurodny leader Nick Roth on saxophone, Kate Ellis on cello, Emer Mayock on flute and percussionist Robbie Harris.
Time:           8pm
Price:           €15/12
Venue:         Triskel @ Jury’s Hotel, Western Road, Cork
To Book:      Book Online at www.triskelartscentre.ie or call 021 427 2022
Email:          info@improvisedmusic.ie
Website       www.improvisedmusic.ie