Search - Jon Balke, Amina Alaoui, Jon Hassell :: Siwan

Siwan is a breathtaking new musical project initiated by Jon Balke, with Amina Alaoui, Kheir Eddine M'Kachiche and Jon Hassell fronting a large ensemble that includes a group of early music players. The listener is at first struck by the power of Alaoui's voice, soaring above Jon Balke's remarkable compositions for baroque ensemble. The soloists are drawn from jazz, scattered improvisational traditions, and the world of early music. Together they perform new music inspired by Arab-Andalusian traditions, a great melting together of styles, forms and ideas.Creative, strongly melodic, song-based music in which west meets east at many levels. Will appeal to followers of ECM's transcultural directions and `world music' as well as jazz listeners and early music enthusiasts.Powerful song texts with words from St John of the Cross, Lope De Vega, Mansur Hallaj and other mystics - variously sung in Arabic, Spanish and Portuguese (CD booklet includes translations).