Sunday 24 July 2022, 8pm
A collaboration between Preetha Narayanan (Violin) and Tara Franks (cello), string duo, Balladeste, explore the versatility and sound potential of just two string instruments. With traces of contemporary minimalism, Indian classical and folk, the duo co-creates all original compositions that are vibrant and experimental yet melodic and filmic in quality – songs without words with a contemporary alt-folk twist.
Balladeste released their much anticipated sophomore album in 2021. A reflective collection of new compositions taking inspiration from a set of Indian devotional songs from the Sathya Sai lineage.
Beyond Breath captures a stillness and contemplative quality, never undermining the attention to detail and intricacy of the instrumental songwriting. Part song, part narrative, part modal imagery, the devotional melodies weave their way through the album, fragmented, played in their entirety, re-invented and interspersed with original reflective responses.
For this gig Balladeste will play a collection of pieces from both their albums interspersed with free improvisations.
Bint Mbareh is a musician with a curiosity about water, pedagogy and the parallels that bring together and keep separate material and unseen worlds. For example, the wave mechanics that govern both sound and water and their uncanny abilities to break borders, with a focus on Palestinian histories of water governance. Bint Mbareh scores films, like Forensic Architecture's Dawaymeh Masssacre investigation and Julie-Yara Atz' What if We Were Happy?, and she makes material work such as the dancing bucket of water she showed at the Sharjah Biennial, derived from earlier work shown at the Royal College of Art, The Tate Modern. She also convenes a choir for non-musicians, and has been regularly installed at Cafe OTO since her Youth Music Residency here in 2021. more at bintmbareh.today
