Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Safar-e-daroon (2020) [Official Digital Download 24/88]

Here is the second release by The Marrow, Grdina’s Vancouver/New York project adapting Arabic and Persian forms to a jazz approach and ethos. For Grdina there is nothing exotic in this endeavor – he’s been playing oud since he was a teenager and first recorded with it on his Songlines debut, Think Like the Waves (2006); his Arabic/jazz 10-piece, Haram, debuted in 2008 and released Her Eyes Illuminate in 2012. Haram is at heart an extravert Vancouver party band filled with avant-jazz improvisers playing the heck out of old-time Arabic pop and folk tunes; The Marrow explores a deeper level of expressive fusion between worlds by means of original compositions (some more or less rooted in tradition, others more fluid in the influences they stir together and the emotions they evoke) and performers whose intuitive grasp of the material and group dynamics is very finely honed.

As Grdina notes, “This recording carries on the development of the ensemble from where Ejdeha left off. The group is defining its own aesthetic, combining aspects of the Persian dastgah and Arabic maqam systems with free improvisation and harmonic fluidity. The band is dedicated to creating modern music that pays homage to tradition while championing personal expression. The title Safar-e-daroon means ‘inner journey.’ The group as a whole and each of the individual musicians are searching inward to best express their own experience of life, love and sorrow. We hope this music will help the listener on their own Safar-e-daroon.”

The program is organized as a sort of rough analogue to this inner journey. It starts with the title tune, the one most structured within the Arabic modal system (maqam) and which in its second half is played in the Iraqi folk georgina 10/16 rhythm. It also features an exciting oud solo. For Grdina “it’s a great send-off point for the ensemble, embracing the tradition with hints of what’s coming next.” “Mini-con” features a high-flying solo by the newest member of the group, the in-demand Canadian violinist Josh Zubot. “He plays with an intensity and fluidity that I rarely hear. He has a history with many different styles of music and is able to bring out aspects of all of them while maintaining his own voice.”

TRACKLIST

1. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Safar-e-Daroon
2. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - El Baz
3. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Mini-con
4. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Calling on You
5. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Shamshir
6. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Convergence
7. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Illumination
8. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Outsize
9. Gordon Grdina's The Marrow - Gabriel James



Thanks to the Original customer.