Yair Dalal presents "On The Banks of The Tigris"
Israeli musician Yair Dalal is well known internationally as an oud and violin player, as well as a teacher and composer. He has performed in concerts and festivals worldwide, including WOMAD festivals from England to Australia, and been nominated as best musician from the Middle East by the BBC World Music Awards.
Dalal’s family originally came from Baghdad and his Iraqi roots are embedded in his music. His influences range from Iraqi and Arabic traditions to the Balkans and India, resulting in a unique fusion of world music. Dalal is also keen to preserve the musical heritage of the Babylonian Jews.
In 2012, Dalal and his ensemble performed in a special concert at London Barbican Centre that brought together the world’s greatest Jewish and Muslim Iraqi musicians for the first time. The concert was filmed for On the Banks of the Tigris, a documentary about Iraqi music being made by Melbourne filmmaker Marsha Emerman.
The idea for the documentary came from Iraqi-Australian actor Majid Shokor. Majid grew up listening to many beautiful songs in Baghdad, but because of censorship under Saddam Hussein’s regime, he did not know that many Iraqi songs were composed and performed by Jewish musicians. The documentary follows Majid’s journey in search of this hidden history. A film trailer and more on this story can be found at: http://www.fruitfulfilms.com.au/films/tigris
Yair Dalal's visit here with Jordi Savall's ensemble has provided the opportunity to bring him together with local Iraqi-Australian musicians from the band Mesopotamia to give listeners a taste of the music of the film, live in an intimate concert in the refurbished Richmond Theatrette
The evening will include a clip from the film and an opportunity to talk to film maker Marsha Emerman and Majid Shokor.
