Nordic Lights in Persian Sky

“This collaboration was born of a deep desire to explore the sounds and musical gestures of Nordic music in relationship and interaction with Eastern and more specifically Persian musical language. Virtuoso and one of the most charming players of the Hardanger fiddle, Benedicte Maurseth, joined me and my musical partner, Patrick Graham, to create sounds and music that are strongly influenced by nature and the spectacular landscapes of the North and as well as by the evolving relationship of human beings with the natural world.

Together, through a “North & East” dialogue, we aimed to paint a picture-in-sound that engages the imagination and transports the listener into exquisite and profound worlds of well-being. As musician-inventors and musician-travellers, we always like to explore the infinite territory of music and memories from civilisations and cultures, which sometimes seem distant, but whose lines we like to shift so that they converge. With this program, we create the utopical image of the magnificent Nordic Lights in a deep and turquoise Persian Sky.

It was clear from the very first rehearsal that this musical adventure was preordained. Benedicte’s music, as fully anchored in the rich ancestral tradition of the Hardanger fiddle, reflects her open approach to creativity and the present moment which is totally aligned with our approach. Very quickly, the differences and similarities between the modal way of phrasing, unfolding musical ideas and rhythmical patterns in Hardanger music and Persian tradition became our playground and a fascinating land of discoveries for the three of us.

While building common musical compositions and nesting our musical ideas inside each other, we immersed ourselves in vast sound landscapes of pure, muted colours and rhythms that are by turns contemplative and frenzied, transporting and navigating the listener through enthralling, imaginary worlds without borders, from North to South and East to West.

To steer the ship into a joyful and ecstatic direction, we bet on complementarity of our sounds and gestures. Benedicte Maurseth’s Hardanger violin, whose rich and mesmerizing sound complements the crystalline sound of my setar. We both share vocal duties, intertwining our voices, floating across melismas, ultimately united by the almost infinite sound palette of the wonderful percussionist, Patrick Graham.” – Kiya Tabassian