CD Review: Yom's 'Le Silence de L'Exode'

Yom
Le Silence de L'Exode
Buda Musique

Yom is a composer and clarinetist with a passion for making music inspired by the Old Testament's Book of Exodus describing the forty years of Jewish people wandering in the deserts of Egypt. The result is an album of plaintive, yet powerful sounds that evoke magical feelings of hope, love, and conquest. The music is rather laid-back and poignant with all of the music created by clarinet, cello, double bass, zarb, daf, and bendir. There are no vocals. The music is very cinematic in parts and aimless in others. The rather varied tones represent a mix of emotions and feelings in the listener. As a result, the tunes are not named in order for the listener to determine his or her own exodus journey. It is a rather consistent one-hour journey that is both nostalgic and refreshing. The instruments move about in dizzying ways at times, while other times the music is very dreamy. At any rate, anyone will find Yom to be an excellent guide for those seeking salvation in music from a heavenly source. ~ Matthew Forss

CD Review: Hewar's 'Letters To A Homeland'

Hewar
Letters To A Homeland
Dreyer Gaido

Syria's Hewar combines traditional Middle Eastern music with scat singing, opera, classical music, and jazz, which resound with joy and talent. "Hewar," which means "dialogue" in Arabic is a fitting title for music that brings people together no matter where they live. The group brings Armenia's Jivan Gasparyan to the forefront, along with special guest, Andreas Mueller on double bass. The group is primarily comprised of Kinan Azmeh on clarinet, Dima Orsho on vocals, and Issam Rafea on oud and vocals. The album was recorded live at Morgenland Festival Osnabrueck on October 7th, 2011. The nine tracks represent a plethora of musical achievements that are definitely worth listening and sharing with others. Anyone familiar with classical, operatic, jazzy, and Middle Eastern tunes will love the vocal stylings and instrumental arrangements on Hewar's latest release. ~ Matthew Forss 

CD Review: Txutxukan's 'Surf The River Lee'

Txutxukan
Surf The River Lee
Wild Boar Music

Hailing from France, Txutxukan (pron: tchoo-tchoo-ken) is a Balkan/Gypsy group named after the Basque phrase for "puttering about" or "doing odd jobs". However, Txutxukan shows no signs of puttering out or about on their latest release, Surf The River Lee. The group is comprised of Dylan Gully on clarinet, sax, kaval, and recorder; Bruno Hollemaert on guitar, bouzouki, accordion, and banjo; Eric Belot on upright bass and electric bass; Joachim Mouflin on percussion, drum kit, and bouzouki; and Joseph Detailleur on accordion. Special guest musician, Stella Rodrigues, plays the gamelan on "El Din." There are a few vocals for added effects. However, the majority of the album is largely instrumental. The instruments come together to form a Klezmer, Gypsy, and Balkan result that is edgy, dance-laden, and always moving. There is a bit of jazz, classical, and avant-garde influences, but nothing is too overt. The sauntering melodies, uppity percussion, and catchy rhythms are breezy, addictive, and richly-textured. Discover Txutxukan today! ~ Matthew Forss 

CD Review: Las Hermanas Caronni's 'Baguala de la siesta'

Las Hermanas Caronni
Baguala de la siesta
Snail Records

The music of Las Hermanas Caronni is actually produced by twins--Laura and Gianna Caronni. The twins are from Argentina. The duo performs tango, folk, and classical music with only a cello and a clarinet. Keep in mind, the duo also sings. The emotive vocals possesss very theatrical--almost operatic--undertones. The worldly nature of the songs is reflected from ancestral origins from Switzerland, Russia, Italy, and Spain. The music is devoid of any additional instrumentation. The entire project is relatively low-fi, but the sounds are beautiful, emotional, and enthralling. Though, fans seeking a more traditional Argentinian release should look elsewhere. Fans with a leaning toward the classical approaches will enjoy Baguala de la siesta the best. ~ Matthew Forss

CD Review: Bidaia's 'Agur Shiva'

Bidaia

Agur Shiva

Self-Release

The Basque regions of Spain and France are relatively underrepresented in today's global music family. Thankfully, Bidaia, which means "voyage", is out to change all that. The group is essentially Caroline Phillips and Mixel Ducau with a few additional musicians. Mixel is from the Basque region, while Caroline is a US-based singer/songwriter of Persian and Greek origin. Both musicians lend vocals on a few tracks, while others are completely instrumental. Caroline plays the ahotsa, zarrabetea, and hurdy gurdy. Mixel plays the ahotsa, guitar, albokak, bamboo clarinet, and hornpipes. The hurdy gurdy is a nice accompaniment that adds a little Scandinavian charisma to the French and Spanish-tinged songs. Almost half of the songs are purely instrumental. The vocal songs are sung in the Basque language. The driving folk rhythms are a bit Scottish, Irish, and Andalusian in tone without any direct comparisons to the aforementioned genres. Nevertheless, Agur Shiva is a lively album with folksy rhythms, traditional instrumentation, and a plethora of Basque charm to go around. ~ Matthew Forss

CD Review: Joel Rubin and Uri Caine's 'Azoy Tsu Tsveyt'

Joel Rubin and Uri Caine

Azoy Tsu Tsveyt

Tzadik

The classic klezmer music is seemingly reinvented by musical contemporaries, Joel Rubin and Uri Caine. Joel's lively, though pensive, clarinet playing is poignant and laid-back. Uri's rhodes and organ-playing makes the music sound folksy, rootsy, and most of all, dreamy. There are no additional instruments used on the recording. Even vocals are absent. The alternative and almost avant-garde rhodes work matches the sounds of Russian folk and smooth jazz. The clarinet propels the music forward without totally disregarding it's historical significance in Jewish and classical music along the way. Joel and Uri manage to succeed in producing a very good recording of klezmer music that is never dull or uninspiring. Fans of klezmer, Yiddish, Jewish, big band, clarinet, instrumental, avant-garde, and jazz music will find much to love about Azoy Tsu Tsveyt. ~ Matthew Forss

CD Review: Francesco Banchini - Italy

Francesco Banchini
Baqshish
Felmay

Italy's Francesco Banchini plays the clarinet, but is joined by several percussion and string instruments on his latest release, Baqshish. In fact, you will hear the guitar, darabouka, accordion, frame drum, riq, nay, flute, bass drum, udu, cumbus, piano, and others. Of course, Italian elements pervade the songs, yet a distinct Balkan presence is also quite strong. The lilting melodies, effervescent instrumentation, and emotionality of the music have something for everyone. The songs incorporate Mediterranean elements, Balkan tunes, Central Asian arrangements, and Trans-European modalities. Moreover, the title, "Baqshish", is a word that is not precisely defined in the liner notes, yet it is mentioned as something that seems to connote 'spirit' or 'gratuity'. Likewise, we are thankful for discovering Francesco Banchini. If you enjoyed the Sicilian group, Milagro Acustico, then you should not pass this one up. Liner notes in Italian and English. ~ Matthew Forss