AULA VERDI
October 1 – 4 h. 10:00-13:00 e 15:00-18:00

This seminar is focused on makam-based compositions. We will analyse their modal structure and learn to recognise both the characteristic motifs and the patterns of phrases that are essential for understanding the order and trajectory of the modulations. These latter constitute a fundamental element in each composition.
The seminar is open to all instruments and will provide for the special participation of Kelly Thoma.

“Music is the language of my dialogue with that which I perceive to be sacred”

Born in 1952 in King’s Lynn, Norfolk (UK), Ross Daly has travelled all over the world, especially in the Middle East through Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent, studying both diverse forms of music and local traditions.
Settling in Crete, he created Labyrinth Musical Workshop in 1982: an educational institution based in the village of Houdetsi since 2002. There, traditional music masters from different parts of the world gather every year to offer seminars and master classes, based on the direct transfer of skills from master to pupil. Labyrinth Musical Workshop is a meeting place for all those interested in musical traditions and today it is recognised in Greece as the leading educational institution in the field of modal music. Daly has released more than 35 albums of his own compositions and arrangements of melodies collected during his travels.
He coined the term ‘contemporary modal music’, which denotes the repertoire of contemporary compositions inspired and influenced by the grammar of musical cultures spread over a geographical area stretching from West Africa to the western foothills of China.

In 1982 he established an educational institution called Labyrinth Musical Workshop, which  since 2002 is situated in the village of Houdetsi, on the island of Crete.  Seminars and “master-classes” are conducted every year at Labyrinth with some of the greatest teachers of traditional music from around the world. It is a meeting point for musicians and students and is recognized as the leading institution in Greece today, in the field of education of modal and traditional music in general.

Daly has released more than 35 albums of his own compositions and of his own arrangements of traditional melodies collected during his travels.

Ross Daly is the originator of the term Contemporary Modal Music, which refers to contemporary compositional works which draw their influences and inspiration from the broader world of Modal musical traditions which are found primarily (although not exclusively) in the vast geographical region between Western Africa and Western China.

Kelly Thoma has been studying the lyra with Ross Daly since 1995 and soon after started travelling with him and his group, “Labyrinth” to perform in some of the most prestigious venues and festivals around the world. She has participated in many projects with musicians from various traditions of the world, such as the Trio Chemirani, Ömer Erdoğdular, Derya Türkan , Zohar Fresco, Efrén López, Pedram Khavar Zamini, Dhruba Ghosh, Ballake Sissoko, Erdal Erzincan, Mehmet Erenler, Yurdal Tokcan, Mayu Shviro, Ustad Mohammed Rahim Khushnawaz and many more. All these collaborations resulted in a unique sound and a personal style on the lyra as well as a creative approach to traditional music.

She is a member of Tokso Folk String Quartet with Anne Hytta, Eleonore Billy and Sigrun Eng exploring and creating music inspired -amongst others- by nordic traditions.

With Ross Daly she has performed in Carnegie Hall, Theatre de la Ville, Queen Elizabeth Hall, San Francisco WMF, Rainforest WMF, Womadelaide, Rudolstadt and many other important venues and festivals around the world.

She has released three albums of her own compositions Anamkhara (2009), 7Fish (2014) and “As Τhe Winds Die Down” (2018). She graduated both from the English Literature Department of the University of Athens and from the Rallou Manou dance school.

TEATRINO
October 1 – 4 h. 10:00-13:00 e 15:00-18:00

Zohar Izhak Fresco is known as a pioneer of the Tof Miriam, the ancient frame drum originated in the Middle East more than three thousand years ago. Fresco understood the great value and the wide musical range that exists in the Tof Miriam and dedicated his life to the development of a new fingering technique and a unique musical language by the name MANEGINA. In doing so Fresco created his own drumming style and became a mentor to musicians all over the world who followed him, learned the secrets of his musical method, and adapted his drumming style in their musical work. His seminar is a Masterclass open to no more than 10 students which will be selected after a previous audition. Topics of the seminar will be:
a) Upper position Bendir (12″ to 14″) fingering technique and compositions
b) Riq (Arabic tambourine) fingering technique and middle eastern traditional rhythms
c) Sitting position Bendir (16″ to 22″) fingering technique, compositions and improvisation

Zohar Izhak Fresco  is an Israeli-born (1969) percussionist and composer. He is one of the most prominent specialists of the frame drums techniques. His personal style combining different traditions and performance practices is praised worldwide. He forms a renowned trio with Polish pianist Leszeck Możdżer and Swedish double bassist Lars Danielsson. Between 1991 and 2003, he was a member of the Israeli world music band Bustan Abraham. His many prestigious collaborations include composer Philip Glass, drummer Hamid Drake, oud player Amir Dinkjian, saxophonist Daniel Zamir and violinist Taiseer Elias.

AULA BOCCHERINI
October 1 – 4 h. 10:00-13:00 e 15:00-18:00

In this workshop we will learn folk songs from different parts of Greece, focusing on the stylistic details of each region: the ornaments, the musical intervals, the rhythmic nuances etc. At the same time we will get a glance at the ethnographic background of each song, the rituals that it accompanies and its place within the yearly circle of festivities. Studying songs from different regions, we will try to find the connections between Greek folk singing and the larger tradition of modal music in the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Martha Mavroidi is a singer, lutist and composer from Greece. Her critically acclaimed debut album “The Garden of Rila” established her as a first class folk musician and singer of the new generation, as well as an accomplished composer and orchestrator. Martha’s extraordinary voice combines the Greek and Middle Eastern ornaments and microtonal subtleties, with the rich colors of Bulgarian singing. Her dazzling technique on the lafta and the saz, is often compared to the skills of master musicians of both folk and jazz origin. Her second album, “Portaki”, features the Martha Mavroidi Trio, with which she has toured in Sweden, Spain, France, Turkey, Cyprus and Greece, and has performed at Womex Globalkan Scene in 2012. Constantly working on new projects, performing also with her acoustic quartet and different music ensembles, she composes music for films and dance show. Martha Mavroidi is the artistic director of Tinos World Music Festival.