Meadows School of the Arts is embracing music from a variety of cultures Thursday with two separate concerts of international music.
The first performance, which features Alash, an international and award-winning ensemble of Tuvan throat singers, is today at 12 p.m. in the lobby of the Bob Hope Theatre. It is the second part of the “Expanding Your Horizons” Brown Bag series, presented by Meadows. The event is open to the public but targets SMU students to expose them to foreign cultures, according to Jamal Mohamed, adjunct lecturer and director of SMU’s World Music Ensemble.
Tuvan throat singing was developed in central Asia to help semi-nomadic herders entertain and communicate with one another over long distances. According to Alash’s Web site, a throat singer can produce up to four distinct pitches in the voice at one time. The singer often imitates real sounds heard in nature, such as blowing wind or whistling birds.
“It’s a really interesting way of using the voice where you can get multiple notes at one time,” Mohamed said.
According to its Web site, Alash is from the Russian Republic of Tuva, which sits in eastern Siberia and borders Mongolia. The group was formed in 1999 at Kyzyl Arts College in Tuva. The five-person ensemble was trained by Kongar-ool Ondar, who is now their artistic director. Ondar was featured in the 1999 film “Genghis Blues.” The film won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival and the Golden Gate Award and Audience Award at the San Francisco International Film Festival. It was also nominated for an Academy Award. Mohamed said Tuvans consider themselves descendants of Genghis Khan.
Also this evening the Meadows World Music Ensemble will perform with the University of North Texas South Indian Cross-Cultural Ensemble, directed by Poovalur Sriji, in Caruth Auditorium at 8 p.m. The program will feature music from Indian, Egyptian, Irish and Greek traditions.
SMU’s World Music Ensemble, directed by Mohamed, is a student group that blends Western music styles with those of various cultures, using traditional composition techniques as well as improvisation. The South Indian Cross-Cultural Ensemble applies Indian music ideals to non-Indian instruments. These include the Chapman Stick, Dijereedoo and the Scratch. Mohamed said the event is significant because it is the first time the very different SMU and UNT schools of music have collaborated. Ed Smith, a percussionist and vibraphonist who teaches at UNT, SMU and Cedar Valley College, will perform as a guest artist. He has performed with many celebrated artists, including John Cage, Café Noir, Johnny Mathis and others. Mohamed, Sriji and Smith, with Fred Hamilton, play together in the group Brahma, which blends jazz, South Indian, Balinese and Middle Eastern music styles.
The Bob Hope Theatre and Caruth Auditorium are located in the Owen Fine Arts Center. Admission is free for both concerts.
