Recording: Kamancello

Artist: Kamancello

Song: [set 2, 2nd piece]

Recorded at Burdock Music Hall, January 17, 2018.

Kamancello - [set 2, 2nd piece, part 1]

Kamancello - [set 2, 2nd piece, part 2]

Having been following this duo from before they had a name, it's been rather pleasing to see the partnership of Shahriyar Jamshidi and Raphael Weinroth-Browne flourish, now with an album to their credit. Mixing Jamshidi's kamanche (an Iranian bowed spike fiddle) with Weinroth-Browne's cello, there's a tangible chemistry here, leaving audience members shocked that all of this music was spontaneously composed, with Jamshidi finding plenty of nooks and crannies to explore while Weinroth-Browne moves from heavy metal shredding to lush romanticism.

[Shahriyar Jamshidi will be playing a set of solo kamanche at the Canadian Music Centre on Saturday, February 17th — an early show starting at 5 o'clock!]

Recording: Jeff Roberts and co.

Artist: Jeff Roberts/ Sarah Peebles/Shahriyar Jamshidi + Jeff Roberts/Branko Džinovic/Heidi Chan

Songs: [excerpts from two improvisations]

Recorded at Array Space (Somewhere There Presents), March 6, 2016.

Jeff Roberts/ Sarah Peebles/Shahriyar Jamshidi - [excerpt from first piece]

Jeff Roberts/Branko Džinovic/Heidi Chan - [edited excerpt]

Following on an event at the CMC showcasing Jeff Roberts' work as a composer, this Somewhere There-hosted night focused on improvisation. His work with guqin follows both traditional and modern paths — the latter deploying a motion-sensing MIDI controller to trigger samples that extend the instrument's sound. Besides examining that sonic range in a solo set that mixed traditional tunes with improvisations, the night also began with two rather-different trios. The first, joined by Sarah Peebles' shō and Shahriyar Jamshidi's kamanche was mostly quiet and still, like nature's ancient ambient music found beside a stream. The second, with Branko Džinovic's extended-technique accordion and Heidi Chan's effect-chain xiao, moved things into the digital age, but still remained rooted in thumping, clacking, plucking tactility.

Recording: Parmela Attariwala

Artist: Parmela Attariwala & Adele Armin / Parmela Attariwala/Branko Dzinovic/Robert Aitken / Parmela Attariwala/Jeff Burke/Casey Sokol / Parmela Attariwala + Shahriyar Jamshidi

Songs: [excerpts from improvisations]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination 28.2), March 10, 2015.

Parmela Attariwala & Adele Armin - [excerpt from an improvisation]

Attariwala-Dzinovic-Aitken - [excerpt from an improvisation]

Attariwala-Burke-Sokol - [edited excerpt from an improvisation]

Parmela Attariwala + Shahriyar Jamshidi - [excerpt from an improvisation]

This Audiopollination kept Parmela Attariwala busy all night long in four sets that saw her pitted against a variety of different sounds. A quiet duet with Adele Armin (violin) hinted at classical austerity, and a trio alongside Branko Dzinovic (accordion) and Robert Aitken (flute) felt like formalized fragments from a folksong, here being subverted by Attariwala skrtching at her strings with a block of styrofoam. Another trio with Casel Sokol (piano and prepared piano) and Jeff Burke (bassoon, theremin) took things on an abstract rocketship ride. A closing duet with Audiopollination favourite Shahriyar Jamshidi (kamanche) was a satisfying close to the night. Kudos once more to Audiopollination for putting such a wide range of sounds together.

[These field recordings, especially the first couple, are a little on the lo-fi side. You'll get a nicer sound if you check out the full recordings over at Audiopollination's bandcamp page.]

Recording: Shahriyar Jamshidi + Raphael Weinroth-Browne

Artist: Shahriyar Jamshidi + Raphael Weinroth-Browne

Song: [excerpt from first piece]

Recorded at Array Space ("Audiopollination #22.1"), September 9, 2014.

Shahriyar Jamshidi + Raphael Weinroth-Browne - [excerpt from first piece]

Full review to follow. Local "improvised bonanza" Audiopollination likes to mix and match musicians who have never played together, an idea that might have found its apotheosis in its "self-curation" project, where musicians program themselves into new, recombinant performance units. Joining together on cello and kamanche (an Iranian bowed spike fiddle), Jamshidi and Raphael Weinroth-Browne spun out a wonderful performance, negotiating the meshing of scales and timbres on the fly — all the more surprising on hearing them explain afterwards that they had only played together once before in a practice setting. Totally entrancing and a wonderfully unexpected delight.

[As always, you can listen to the whole night over at Audiopollination's bandcamp. The next Audiopollination, another night of self-curation, takes place Tuesday (October 14th) at Array Space.]