Recording: Tanjer Alam

Artist: Tanjer Alam

Song: three unknown songs^*

Recorded at Flemingdon Park (Arts in the Park: Labyrinth Ontario – week 2), August 10, 2019.

Tanjer Alam - unknown song #1

Tanjer Alam - unknown song #2

Tanjer Alam - unknown song #3

Another trip on a delightful summer day over to Flemingdon Park for the second of Labyrinth Ontario's Arts in the Park events. There were Bengali folk tunes on tap this time round, and though billed under the name of tabla expert Tanjer Alam (a.k.a. Rajeeb), this was in fact performed by a trio that saw him joined by Zahid Hossain on harmonium and Junaed Anwar on dotara. There was a wonderful sense of interplay as they grooved out on several folk styles, pausing only to talk about their instruments and explain the origins of some of the pieces. [Do note once more that these (literal!) field recordings have a bit of an "in the rough" feeling, so consider the rumble of wind and other background sounds as part of the experience.]

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Quraishi

Artist: Quraishi

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at Flemingdon Park (Arts in the Park: Labyrinth Ontario), August 3, 2019.

Quraishi - unknown

Excellent work from Labyrinth Ontario, teaming up with the Arts in the Parks program to bring a series of Sunday afternoon concerts of modal musics to Flemingdon Park. Just down past the Science Centre and nestled under a leafy, shady corner of the vast swath of parkland, this couldn't have been a lovelier day for sitting outside and hearing some beautiful sounds. Music for the first concert was provided by Quraishi, sharing some Afghani folk styles on his rubab, and backed by Tanjeer Alam Rajeeb on tabla. There were gorgeous little overtones in the ringing notes, although that might be lost a little in this, which is very much a field recording — but you can get a sense of the space if you listen carefully, with some birdsong and cicadas (and a little wind noise against my mics) in the background.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: This Tale of Ours Quartet

Artist: This Tale of Ours Quartet

Songs: Little Black Dog + Neveser 14 / Synkathistos

Recorded at Eastminster United Church (Labyrinth Musical Workshop Ontario Concert Series), May 12, 2018.

This Tale of Ours Quartet - Little Black Dog + Neveser 14

This Tale of Ours Quartet - Synkathistos

This was the first in a series of concerts that were the public-facing segment for a busy first year of the Labyrinth Musical Workshop. Labyrinth's central component was a series of workshops giving students a chance to have close-up encounters with masters of different modal traditions from around the world — and the chance to hear many of those same masters making rare local concert appearances was the icing on the cake. This opening show saw an ongoing project that mixes two amazing local musicians (Pedram Khavarzamini: tombak; Araz Salek, tar) with two of the founders (Ross Daly: lyra, tarhu, and rabab; Kelly Thoma, lyra) of the original Labyrinth Workshop on Crete.

Two sets of music from the quartet mixed traditional tunes with new compositions and saw solo turns all around become embroidered by the group's effortless collective flow. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to make any of the other shows in the series, but I kept hearing amazing things about the visiting headliners as well as the emerging local musicians who opened the shows — and the skills and techniques learned will linger on in the practices of a whole host of local players. Labyrinth is truly something that our "music city" needs more of, so hopefully the conditions will be put in place for this concept to thrive in our soil.

Contest: Labyrinth Musical Workshop

Labyrinth Musical Workshop Concert Contest

May 12–June 2, 2018

Inspired by the original Labyrinth Musical Workshop based in Crete, this new initiative from local music stalwarts Araz Salek and Jonathan Adjemian is devoted to exploring the traditions and finding new innovations in global modal musics. To that end, Labyrinth is hosting nearly a dozen workshops with master musicians from around the world. One spin-off from that is that many of them will also be performing in a series of concerts over the next four Saturday nights:

• This Tale of Ours (Saturday, May 12th), a quartet made up of two Toronto-based musicians (tar player Araz Salek and tombak player Pedram Khavarzamini), and two musicians based in Crete (multi-instrumentalists Ross Daly and Kelly Thoma), playing original and existing compositions drawing on the modal musics of Iran, the former Ottoman empire, and the Balkans.
• Kurdish tanbur legend Ali Akbar Moradi and Azeri Kemanche virtuoso Imamyar Hasanov each play a solo set on Saturday, May 19th.
• a rare Toronto presentation of Afghani classical music by Afghan rubab player Qureishi, plus a performance by Toronto/Istanbul master of Turkish folk styles Ahmet Ihvani, performing on baǧlama on Saturday, May 26th.
• world-renowned Bulgarian vocalist Tzvetanka Varimezova (in concert with local musicians) plus oud master Bassam Bishara on Saturday, June 2nd.

TICKETS + MORE INFO

Compared to a $5 DIY show, these tickets are a bit more of an investment, but these are rare opportunities to see musicians that don't often play here. All shows are at Eastminster United Church (310 Danforth Av.), close to Chester Station. You can get information and buy tickets directly from Labyrinth's website.

CONTEST

Thanks to our friends at Labyrinth, I have a pair of tickets to give away to your choice of one of these four concerts.

To enter, shoot me an email to mechanicalforestsound@gmail.com, with "contest" in the title and your name in the body, plus the name or date of which show you're interested in. I'll randomly draw a winner on Friday, May 11th at noon.

Recording: Bassam Bishara with Pedram Khavarzamini

Artist: Bassam Bishara with Pedram Khavarzamini

Song: two unknown songs^*

Recorded at 918 Bathurst (Labyrinth Ontario Launch / Fundraiser), September 15, 2017.

Bassam Bishara with Pedram Khavarzamini - unknown #1

Bassam Bishara with Pedram Khavarzamini - unknown #2

This night was the formal public launch of Labyrinth Ontario, a new initiative founded by local musicians Araz Salek and Jonathan Adjemian to promote "the study and enjoyment of global traditions of modal music". Bringing together some diverse ensembles, this night featured music of the highest calibre — an auspicious sign of things to come as the group begins to organize a number of teaching workshops and concerts next year.

It was a genuine treat to close out the night to see this duo of two local masters of their instruments. I had seen tombak player Pedram Khavarzamini a few times before (including earlier in the evening) but witnessing Bassam Bishara on oud was a joyful revelation. With no setlist, the pair would simply suggest songs to one another and then go, usually leading off with Bishara establishing the tune on his own before Khavarzamini would join in to buoy him along. With a slight smile and playful twinkle in his eye, Bishara looked like any musician engaged in a casual back porch jam session, but that would belie the sheer staggeringly advanced level these two were operating at. A real reminder of the musical richness that exists in this city around us.

^* Does anyone know the titles to these? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Labyrinth Finale Ensemble

Artist: Labyrinth Finale Ensemble

Song: Dar Hejiroke

Recorded at 918 Bathurst (Labyrinth Ontario Launch / Fundraiser), September 15, 2017.

Labyrinth Finale Ensemble - Dar Hejiroke

This night was the formal public launch of Labyrinth Ontario, a new initiative founded by local musicians Araz Salek and Jonathan Adjemian to promote "the study and enjoyment of global traditions of modal music". Bringing together some diverse ensembles, this night featured music of the highest calibre — an auspicious sign of things to come as the group begins to organize a number of teaching workshops and concerts next year.

Conceived as a finale to the evening, this brought together nearly all of the night's musicians into one mega-ensemble to raise their voices and instruments together on this Kurdish wedding song. When Bassam Bishara's plane was a little late coming in, it got shuffled before his set, but the quick flip allowed the night to keep moving.

Recording: Meden Glas

Artist: Meden Glas

Song: Trugnala E Malka Mome

Recorded at 918 Bathurst (Labyrinth Ontario Launch / Fundraiser), September 15, 2017.

Meden Glas - Trugnala E Malka Mome

This night was the formal public launch of Labyrinth Ontario, a new initiative founded by local musicians Araz Salek and Jonathan Adjemian to promote "the study and enjoyment of global traditions of modal music". Bringing together some diverse ensembles, this night featured music of the highest calibre — an auspicious sign of things to come as the group begins to organize a number of teaching workshops and concerts next year.

Exploring overlapping streams of Balkan folk music (mostly in the vocal tradition), this group brought songs from Dalmatia, Bulgaria, Kosovo and Greece, all united by modal polyphony. Richly emotionally resonant, a non-speaker of the language hardly needs a programme to sense the yearning spirit in this Bulgarian tune about a young girl being courted while heading to the well.

Recording: The Iranian Modal Music Ensemble of Toronto

Artist: The Iranian Modal Music Ensemble of Toronto

Song: Chahamezrab

Recorded at 918 Bathurst (Labyrinth Ontario Launch / Fundraiser), September 15, 2017.

The Iranian Modal Music Ensemble of Toronto - Chahamezrab

This night was the formal public launch of Labyrinth Ontario, a new initiative founded by local musicians Araz Salek and Jonathan Adjemian to promote "the study and enjoyment of global traditions of modal music". Bringing together some diverse ensembles, this night featured music of the highest calibre — an auspicious sign of things to come as the group begins to organize a number of teaching workshops and concerts next year.

I recognized some of the players here from other shows — most notably Araz Salek (tar) and Pedram Khavarzamini (tombak), who I saw recently exploring some Javanese/Persian crosscurrents with Evyind Kang and Jessika Kenney. The ensemble was completed by Mahan Nohroudi (santour), Padideh Aharnejad (tar), Kianoush Khalilian (ney), and Ava Ayoubi (bass tar). The set consisted of a few longer songs linked by solos and improvisations — all of it really beautiful stuff.