Join Fire Museum Presents for these two performances of Iranian classical music. First up is a tar solo by Saina Zamanian (Tehran, Iran). We conclude the premiere with a santur performance by Sadaf Amini (Kingston, Canada).

BIOS: Saina Zamanian:

I started music by playing piano at age 7. Four years later, I entered music school and chose Tar as my main musical instrument. Because of my interest in the piano, I was trained in western music simultaneously with Iranian music.

When I entered University to study Iranian music, I started performing concerts and festivals in Iran and abroad. My Iranian music group NASTAAR won second prize at the Moqam Music Festival in Uzbekistan.

After obtaining my bachelor’s degree at the top of my class, I was able to apply for a master’s degree without taking an entrance exam. During my master’s project, I published 2 albums, one of which consisted of the songs of Ali-naqi Vaziri and the second a Tar solo. I have also translated music articles from English and German into Persian.

I recently defended my master’s project and I now teach at Tehran music school, the place where I learned music.

Sadaf Amini:

I started learning the Santur, at the age of 12, and later entered Tehran Music High School. In 2012, I received my Bachelor’s degree in Iranian Music Performance at Tehran University. During my studies, I trained with several Masters of the Santur: Said Sabet, Mina Oftadeh, Siamak Aghaei, Ardavan Kamkar, Majid Kiani, and Daryush Talaei. After immigrating to Canada, I received my Master’s Degree in Music Technology at the University of Toronto in 2018.

I performed at various music festivals and received First Prize in the 2006 Fajr Music Festival for Ensembles (Iran), the 2007 Festival of Music Conservatories (the 2007 Fajr Music Festival (Iran), the 2015 Colour of Music Festival (Vancouver) ,the 2019 YGK emerging musician competition (Kingston), and the 2020 Kingston Film Festival Local Music Video Showcase Jury Prize (Kingston).

I also collaborated with various ensembles at multiple concerts in Iran, Turkey, China, and Canada, leading to the following six album recordings: “Gar Chehre Benmayad” by Mohammadreza Fayaz, “Khayam and Minimal” by Pooria Shivafard, “Rishe Dar Khak” by Masih Tahvildari, “Bird Dance” by Farnaz Ohadi; as well as solo albums: “12 Pishdaramad and Reng” by Hossein Alizadeh, and “33 Pieces for the Santur” arranged by Mina Oftade, “Flow” by Sadaf Amini.

event link: https://firemuseumpresents.com/events/20th-anniversary-video-premieres-episode-7/?fbclid=IwAR0-hrIVoodqARIjdo0jxzuc-nNHEGIo4LosTkjJSMPC8FkV4qC6HMH8hYc

other links:

Saina Zamanian:

https://soundcloud.com/sainazamanian

Sadaf Amini: https://www.sadafamini.ca/

Donate to Fire Museum Presents here: https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/fire-museum-presents

Vision Driven Artists (VDA) Workshops are free and/or low-cost capacity-building workshops for self-producing artists/musicians, arts organization staff, and event curators in all disciplines. Attendees learn new skills, gain new resources, and meet and connect with other local artists.

Facilitated by Marria Nakhoda

-Plan the basic building blocks of your website

-Look at examples of artist websites to learn what appeals to you and best suits your work

-Learn about different online platforms you can use to design and host your website

**This session will be RECORDED**

***All workshops will be held online until further notice. All workshops in the series are FREE and OPEN to the public. However, you must pre-register to receive a link to the webinar. Please register HERE

Come and learn about native Mexican Aztec/Mexican drumming through this humanities talk and hands-on workshop series. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-7pm, beginning June 15. Learn some basic rhythms learn about the meaning of the sounds, history and play drums like the old Mexican way.

1hr long class (no need of drum or experience drumming). 5 classes with an optional final online presentation. You must attend all 5 classes. 

Ages 15 to 99

Class dates: Tue June 15, Thu June 17, Tue June 22, Thu June 24, and Tue June 29.

All are 6pm-7pm Eastern. 

This series is being taught by Brujo de la Mancha. Born in Mexico City, Brujo is a multidisciplinary, self-taught artist. He moved to Philadelphia in February 1998. Today, he serves as Artistic Director of Ollin Yoliztli Calmecac, a Philadelphia-based organization that works to reclaim Mexicayotl as a living culture. Brujo is also a co-founder of the Philadelphia Indigenous Day. 

These classes will take place using 8x8 (https://8x8.vc/), a free, user-friendly online meeting platform that makes musical instruction and group practice a little easier than other platforms that we've tried. 

Registration is required to receive the class link. There is no mandatory registration fee, though you're welcome to make a donation if you wish. If not, no problem. Please register HERE and choose the free or donation option. 

A Collaborative Sculpture Project to Commemorate Those Lost by the Coronavirus Pandemic

About this event

Join 100,000 Folds in honoring and mourning COVID-19 victims through origami. This community sculpture project is folding 100,000 pieces of paper - one for each of the first 100,000 deaths in the United States from the pandemic. During this event, gather virtually with artist Joanna Hutchinson to learn to make the folded pieces, and build community while folding with others. The folded paper units will be assembled into larger sculptures to be displayed in Philadelphia upon completion, when it is safe to do so. Participants in this online folding session will get a sneak preview of some of the plans for the final sculpture. Participants will receive a package of 50 custom cut sheets of paper to fold during this event, sent to the mailing address provided through the USPS. After the event, participants are asked to send their folded work to the artist by USPS. This online event requires students to have a device to join the class with reliable internet access. If you are interested in participating in the project, but not the online event, you can sign up to work independently at 100thousandfolds.com.

About the Instructor

Based in West Philly, Joanna Hutchinson is a part-time sculptor, avid crafter, and enjoys a career in finance. She likes bringing people together: for friendship, community, and art making. 100,000 Folds is a way for the artist, and others, to mourn and reflect around the coronavirus crisis.

Cost

This is a free event, but donations are welcome. All donations will go to support PHL Covid-19 Fund, supporting community efforts to help those directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Registration is required to receive the Zoom link. Please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/100000-folds-a-collaborative-sculpture-project-tickets-152174029619

Till Arts Project presents the June installment of Third Friday Unwinds, which will take place on Friday, June 18, 2021 from 6:30-7:30pm. Third Friday Unwinds is a monthly, hour-long, virtual event centering art and performance by LGBTQ+ creatives. The event is meant to be a relaxing, accessible way to start your weekend with some creativity from wherever you are. If you're interested in attending, please email  tillartsproject@gmail.com and they'll send you the Zoom link. As always, this virtual event is free.

The featured performers for June will be *drumroll* David Underwood and Wit Lopez. 

David Underwood is a vocalist and self-taught pianist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hailing from a family of gifted singers and instrumentalists, David’s passion for music began at an early age. Since graduating from the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, and studying Jazz Voice Performance at Temple University, David has performed at a number of venues, including The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Academy of Music and The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, World Café Live, Plays and Players Theatre, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and New York City’s Lincoln Center.

David performs regularly with his trio, as well as with his family, The Underwoods in and around the Philadelphia area.

If you're interested in attending, please email  tillartsproject@gmail.com and they'll send you the Zoom link. As always, this virtual event is free.

Soundscaperecordinglab.com

G. CALVIN WESTON'S GROOVESCAPE PROJECT 

VOLUME 13 LIVE. SOLO

CRAB PLATTER SPECIAL

Featuring

Grant Calvin Weston on Drums and Trumpet

Beni Fuchs and René Müller = Tingly Pre-recorded Guitar efx.

Jonathan Saxon on Pre-recorded Electronics

“Weston lays down a ferocious groove with ecstatic shouts … tugging rhythmic displacements that tease like thunder and lightning throughout.” -All About Jazz

“Calvin Weston is wild enough by himself; he gets even crazier when he’s joined by other percussionists … [achieves] a rare cohesion, fusing jazz, hip-hop, African rhythms, and funk into an invigorating and exploratory sound that’s both enjoyable and intellectual.” -Philadelphia Weekly“Fierce grooves, torrid worldbeat percussion vamps, and raucous soloing escapades … a mind-altering exposition” -eJazzNews

“Calvin is one of my biggest influences. He has been a huge inspiration to many musicians and a portal into Ornette Coleman’s funky harmolodic world. This recording is a culmination of music made on the West Coast and in his Philadelphia hometown. The intense wild alchemy utilizing acoustic and electronic sounds in combination with other Philadelphia musical mavericks makes this a very special (and fun!) trip into the world of Grant Calvin Weston.” -Billy Martin (Medeski Martin & Wood)

This event will stream live at 8:30pm Eastern. Catch the livestream at The Rotunda's YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/TheRotundaPhilly or https://youtu.be/E28Z2_CgIbk

Registration is not required and anyone may watch for free BUT G. Calvin Weston will gladly accept donations/tips via PayPal. Please send to drummingsongdrummerman@gmail.com

FIRE MUSEUM PRESENTS20TH ANNIVERSARY VIDEO PREMIERES EPISODE 8 - MIKE KHOURY & AMAL WAQAR

Welcome to Episode 8 of the 20th Anniversary Video Premieres. Tonight we are featuring Mike Khoury from Detroit USA performing “For Silwan” (approx 27 minutes) and Amal Waqar from Muscat, Oman (approx 30 minutes). Amal is performing:

1. Sa’alouni al Nas – Rahbani Brothers

2. Ya Hilwa Ya Jara – Salim Rashid al-Suri. Arr by Amal Waqar

3. Ya Tayr Belligh Salamati – Muftah Khamis, arr by Amal Waqar

4. Untitled (2019) in Sawt Arabi rhythm – Amal Waqar

5. Min Yasellim (2021) – Amal Waqar

Direct link to watch the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1j9hDrl2jQ

bios:

Mike Khoury is a violinist, composer, researcher and curator based in Detroit, MI. Khoury’s work as a performer includes the incorporation of quantitative methods in the social sciences as a way of informing his improvisation and composition. His performance work is diverse and includes the group Porcelain Hammer, The Redford Civic Symphony Orchestra, duets with percussionist Ben Hall, and duets with dancer/choreographer Leyya Tawil. Khoury and Tawil have presented their work in San Francisco, New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Berlin and Beirut. As a researcher, Khoury has published on radical economics theory as well as a chapter on the composer Halim El-Dabh in an anthology of the Arab Avant Garde (Wesleyan University Press). He continues his research and experiments in sound and composition from his studio in Redford, MI. Khoury’s curatorial work includes that of presenting live music at Entropy Studios since 1999 in both Hamtramck and Redford locations as well as producing recorded music on the Entropy Stereo recording label. Khoury was the recipient of a Knight Foundation Challenge Grant in 2018 and is currently a 2020 Kresge Fellow.

—————————————————-Amal Waqar is an independent Omani oud player and composer. Born along the coast of the Arabian Peninsula in Muscat, Oman, Amal was captivated by sound from a young age and clandestinely listened to music throughout her childhood. She began playing oud at fifteen after first being introduced to the instrument in the shop of a local tradesman. A deeply historic and gendered instrument in the Middle Eastern canon, the oud has seldom been an accessible instrument to women. As part of her personal journey, Amal intends to contribute to a growing dialogue working to break down stereotypes of the instrument.

She attended Berklee College of Music to immerse herself in sound, studying closely with oud master Simon Shaheen. An extension of Amal’s unique musical perspective lies in her compositions, which often tease listeners with creative and unconventional interpretations of traditional rhythms and melodies. She continues to expand on the instrument’s current and potential abilities. Her performances include Katara’s Festival for Oud Instrument, Beirut & Beyond International Music Festival, and with the National Arab Orchestra. Katara’s Festival for Oud Instrument, Beirut & Beyond International Music Festival, and the National Arab Orchestra.

Direct link to watch the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1j9hDrl2jQ

Bowerbird is pleased to present Liminal States, a new series of late night, live streamed concerts intended to be listened to as you fall asleep. Aiming to center and calm, the musicians will seek to lead listeners to that magic space between awake and asleep. Tune in and bliss out. Guitarist Loren Connors will perform from his home in New York.

This event is part of the Liminal States Series

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Loren Connors has improvised and composed original guitar music for over four decades. His music embraces the underlying aesthetics of blues, Irish airs, blues-based rock and other genres while letting go of rigid forms. He names abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko as his most important influence. Connors has performed solo and with many veterans of independent music such as Alan Licht, Thurston Moore, Daniel Carter, Kim Gordon, Samara Lubelski, Jandek and Keiji Haino. Connors has collaborated over the years with vocalist Suzanne Langille, including in an avant blues band called Haunted House with guitarist Andrew Burnes and percussionist Neel Murgai. His recordings have been released on Family Vineyard, Recital, Northern Spy, Drag City, and other labels.

Admission to this online event is Free / Pay What You Wish ($20 suggested). REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. A link will be sent to you the day of the event. The performance will start at 11:00pm Eastern Time and will run approximately 40 mins. Please register at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/loren-connors-tickets-155993104575 

Other events in the Liminal States Series:

King Britt 

Thu, Jul 8 @ 11pm

https://www.bowerbird.org/event/king-britt-liminal-states/

Shahzad Ismaily

Sun, Jul 25 @ 11pm

https://www.bowerbird.org/event/shahzad-ismaily-liminal-states/

Jupiter Blue

Thu, Aug 5 @ 11pm

https://www.bowerbird.org/event/jupiter-blue-liminal-states/

claire rousay

Sun, Aug 22 @ 11pm

https://www.bowerbird.org/event/claire-rousay-liminal-states/

Christopher Sean Powell

Mon, Sep 6 @ 11pm

[ link soon ]

Birdie Busch

Thu, Sep 16 @ 11pm

[ link soon ]