Music of Badakhshan
🎵 December 14, 2023 - Music of Badakhshan:
Dawood Pazhman, Murad Sarkhosh and Roots Revival Ensemble
Roots Revival Series 4:
Afghanistan celebrates the vibrant music and cultural diversity of Afghanistan. This 4th series is a collaboration between Roots Revival, SHIFT, the Odeon Theater Afghan musicians in exile. The experimental project, which combines tradition and innovation, takes up four musical genres from Afghanistan. Afghan guest musicians from around the world will join the Roots Revival Ensemble in Vienna and develop unique interpretations of four Afghan music genres. An incomparable musical performance awaits you!
Music from Badakhshan
The music of the Badakhshan region of Afghanistan displays unique repertoires that differ from other regions in Afghanistan and other Central Asian musical styles. It includes spiritual songs, the madah, a religious performance in the form of sung praise of Sufi poetry that often lasts for hours, and bazmi, folk songs based on oral traditions. Characteristic of Badakhshan music is the use of a unique scale and diverse rhythms (Benze, Rastau, Rahpai, Petrajag). Songs like Spek Bazai, Bapirak Bazai, Chamcha Dance, Dergilak, Flak-Khani, Lehlik, Madah-Khani, Shah Mubarak and Ser Tarashan are typical of the region. The vocals are characterized by a clear, smoky and nasal-sounding tone, which plays an important role in genres such as the Falak Sober dirges, which can be performed either a cappella with free rhythms or with instruments in a regular beat. Traditional instruments in Badakhshan music include the Ghijak pointed violin, the Daf frame drum, the Ney end flute, and local variations of the rubab and tanbur.
DAWOOD PAZHMAN - Qushqarcha, vocals Dawood Pazhman is a versatile musician, singer and composer. His musical journey began in 2004 when he enrolled in the Faculty of Fine Arts at Kabul University. With a deep passion for the Qeshqarche and a talent for composing and arranging music, he has thrilled audiences with his performances. Dawood Pazhman has achieved success in music competitions both in his home country and abroad and has taken his music to various provinces of Afghanistan as well as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and France. He currently heads the music department at the Pole Surkh Cultural Center, where he continues to contribute to the Afghan music scene. He has lived in Germany since 2022 and continues his work in exile.
MURAD SARKHOSH - Ghijak Murad Sarkhosh is a respected figure in the Afghan music scene. After graduating from Kabul University, Ustad Murad Sarkhosh began his mission to preserve Afghan folk music through performances and teaching. His travels took him to Germany, Finland, England, Switzerland, Sweden, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, India and beyond. Since 2006 he has been the principal of the Afghan National Music Institute (ANIM) and a member of the teaching staff. Even after the 2021 evacuation, he continued his work in exile and is now active in exile at ANIM in Lisbon, Portugal. Ustad Murad Sarkhosh is the founder of the Shughnan Music School in Badakhshan, where young talents are nurtured. He was a key member of the Safar Ensemble, which promoted musical exchange between Germany and Afghanistan. Today he leads the ANIM Ensemble, which preserves and promotes traditional and classical Afghan music to ensure its long-lasting legacy.
MEHDI AMINIAN – Ney, Setar, vocals Mehdi's musical beginnings in Persian music, especially Ney, go back to his youth, which he spent in Iran. He left his country at the age of just 16 and, as he later realized, had a particular interest in experimenting with ancient Persian music. Since his youth he has lived in various countries in Europe and Southeast Asia. Through this and his fascination for Sufi literature and poetry as well as his participation in a wide variety of musical projects, Mehdi Aminian was able to develop a unique artistic style that goes far beyond well-known genres. Over the last ten years he has dedicated himself to the development and implementation of international music and research projects within the “Roots Revival” association he founded, with the aim of establishing a dialogue between different musical traditions around the world.
HELENE GLÜXAM - double bass Helene Glüxam plays in a wide variety of formations, from pop/rock to jazz to classical. For several years she has been increasingly involved in the broad field of world music. Among other things, she is a member of the Iranian-Kurdish world/jazz ensemble Kurdophone, which won the Creole Global Contest Berlin in 2019. She is also a member of the “Webern Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra” and is currently working on her first solo program.
DAVID SIX – piano David Six, pianist and composer, studied piano, improvisation and classical Indian music in Linz, Vienna, Berlin and New Delhi. His solo piano releases have received international awards. David Six proves himself to be an expert in creating wide spaces that give deeper meaning to every single note, every melody and every sonic experiment, far from any mentality. His work is currently at the center of his work with the chamber music ensemble Stargaze and his project Dance with the Ghosts. www.davidsix.com
HAIDER KHAN – percussion, vocals Haider, an internationally acclaimed musician, was born in Gorau, Rajasthan, India and has called Vienna and India home since 2014. Haider founded the ensemble “The Folk Brothers” and works with renowned Indian and international musicians. He is involved in fascinating interdisciplinary projects, including “Mythos Mozart” (2022), the “Traumreise” concert at Vienna’s Musikverein (2022) and an unforgettable performance with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra at “Hollywood in Vienna” (2017). Haider inspires audiences worldwide with his music that transcends boundaries.
HAIDER KHAN – percussion, vocals Haider, an internationally acclaimed musician, was born in Gorau, Rajasthan, India and has called Vienna and India home since 2014. Haider founded the ensemble “The Folk Brothers” and works with renowned Indian and international musicians. He is involved in fascinating interdisciplinary projects, including “Mythos Mozart” (2022), the “Traumreise” concert at Vienna’s Musikverein (2022) and an unforgettable performance with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra at “Hollywood in Vienna” (2017). Haider inspires audiences worldwide with his music that transcends boundaries.
ABOUT THE PROJECT Since the return of the Taliban in Afghanistan, there has been a massive change in the Afghan cultural scene. Making music is forbidden and has even become life-threatening in a country that has an extraordinary musical culture. The world is once again experiencing a mass exodus of Afghans. Today, Afghan musicians are only allowed to make music in exile. After the first year of regime change, most waves of international support and empathy for Afghanistan have subsided. The challenges to the lives of Afghans and Afghan artists have increased enormously inside and outside the country. With the “Roots Revival Series: Afghanistan” project we would like to draw attention to the diversity and richness of Afghan music and thereby support some of the Afghan musicians. We have a limited number of free tickets for Afghans living in Austria who cannot afford the tickets but would like to be there. If you are interested, please write to roots.revival.official@gmail.com . ROOTS REVIVAL SERIES Is an innovative, international and intercultural project by Roots Revival in cooperation with Theater Odeon. Our goal is to promote the musical diversity of underrepresented minority groups in Austria and the world. At the same time, we offer high quality music content that combines tradition and innovation and gives a deeper musical and cultural understanding of the different cultures under focus, both for us organizers and the musicians involved; and of course for the Austrian and international public. ROOTS REVIVAL ASSOCIATION The Vienna association Roots Revival for the promotion of world musical heritage, led by Mehdi Aminian (musician and ethnomusicologist) and Ioana Aminian (linguist), has set itself the goal of connecting artists with authentic musical heritage, documenting their work and making it known. The collaboration of artists with different cultural backgrounds creates authentic and at the same time contemporary and innovative music through intensive, experimental exchange. The focus should not be on the preservation of traditional musical forms, but rather on the maintenance and lively development of traditional forms in the sense of a direct artistic dialogue.