‘Sounds Like Home’ launches with a virtual opening reception bringing artists, curators and musicians together to deep into the world of lullabies. Starting with curators’ introduction of the exhibition in conversation with exhibiting artists, the event will be followed by a musical talk with amazing musicians and masters.
Program:
18:00 - Curator and Artist Talk
Ceyda Oskay, Hannah Reyes Morales, Rashin Fahandej
Co-presented with Center for Middle Eastern Studies at UC Berkeley
19:00 - Lullaby Sessions
Mahsa Vahdat & Marjan Vahdat & Khatchadour Katchadourian
Co-presented with Diaspora Arts Connection
About Musicians:
Mahsa Vahdat is an award-winning performer of Persian vocal art and a strong advocate of freedom of expression in music. Her career has given a deeper knowledge of Iranian poetry and music to large audiences in the world and has taken Persian poetry and music to new heights. Mahsa believes in creating a universal expression of music based on her traditional and regional musical roots. Without being visible in her own society because of restrictions of female solo voice after the Islamic Revolution in 1979 in Iran, she and her sister Marjan Vahdat have continuous contact with a large audience who appreciate their art, both in Iran and abroad.
Mahsa has three decades of pedagogical experience in teaching classical Persian music to Iranian, and non-Iranian students alike, and has mentored her students on a variety of wide-ranging collaborative projects. On June 19, 2020 Mahsa celebrated the release of her new Enlighten the Night CD (available on the KKV label).
For more information, you can visit mahsavahdat.net
Marjan Vahdat Iranian singer Marjan Vahdat's career has given a deeper knowledge about Iranian poetry and music to large audiences in Europe, America, Asia, Oceania and Africa. Marjan has developed her personal style based on the Persian vocal tradition of classical and regional folk music, with a contemporary expression. she always searched for ways to make her music relevant to the present world. Even if the origin of her styles is Iranian, she believes in her music’s ability to express a universal message of humanism and freedom.
Since 1995 she has performed as an independent singer and musician in many concerts and festivals in Asia, Europe, America and Africa. Following her participation in the album Lullabies from the Axis of Evil (2004), Marjan together with her sister Mahsa started a long lasting collaboration with the Norwegian record label Kirkelig Kulturverksted (KKV) and This collaboration led to a worldwide release of a series of records and a number of tours and concerts in many countries.
Khatchadour Khatchadourian was born in Lebanon, and grew up singing for 7 years in the Syrian-Armenian children's choir, Karoun. He credits the start of his musical focus on meditative genres to his early years singing in Armenian Orthodox church. He began playing the Armenian woodwind, Duduk, in 2006. He holds Bachelor's degrees in both Anthropology & Middle Eastern Studies from the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Khatchadour is a founding member of the Sayat Nvaq Ensemble (Traditional Eastern Armenian, 2015), Saideh & Khatch (Persian & Armenian, 2014), and Yeraz Ensemble (Arabic & Armenian, 2018). He is also a supporting musician in the Kaavya Connections: World Poetry, Literature & Music. Khatchadour combines sacred Armenian and Arabic voice with Duduk and electronica. He works within world music, meditation, sound healing and ambient music genres. Khatchadour's latest album focuses on Armenian lullabies.
For more information, you can visit khatchmusic.com
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