Various recordings and music by composer and violinist Thea Farhadian (USA/Berlin). Collaborations with & KLAUS KÜRVERS: eXcavations, and Dean Santomieri, Redblue.
Thea Farhadian violinist/composer, comes from the background of new contemporary music and has worked with a number of multi-disciplinary projects including composing music for video. Her solo work with the violin and interactive electronics integrates extended techniques with tonal structures and sound-based material. She has performed with Amy X Neuburg, Korhan Erel, Gerhard Uebele, Daniel Schorno, Daphna Naphtali, and S.F. Sound.
Voices from Behind the Veil, integrates interviews of Egyptian women on the subject of the
hijab (the various head and body coverings of Islamic women) into a multilingual sound collage of
women's voices. By weaving women's opinions, stories, and discussions about the hijab together,
Voices from Behind the Veil reveals the multifaceted opinions and emotions by using a variety of
communication styles, some completed statements and other partially revealed dialogues, yielding a
richness of diversity in sound and content. The primary impetus of this project is to shift the (western)
gaze from stereotypical assumptions easily conjured by visual images of veiled women to an aural
encounter where the women (both veiled and not veiled) speak for themselves. Material for this project was gathered in the summer or 2003, where Farhadian was studying Arabic music with Egypt’s well-known violinist, Alfred Gamil. The interviews are comprised of all Egyptian women who represent varied perspectives on veiling—two women are unveiled, one woman wears a more “Spanish” veil, another with a traditional hijab (head-covering that covers all of the hair), and one with. The participants were diverse with respect to their age, socio-economic class, and education. Subjects covered in the interviews include personal stories, historical and cultural phenomena, relationship to the body, other women, men, fashion, family, the western world, the workplace, Islam, and societal expectations. Behind the layered interviews, the streets in Cairo play out.
Tattoos and Other Markings
46:00, In 4 sections, 2006-2008
"Tattoos and Other Markings" explores the experience of memory, weaving
together concepts of the old and the new, past and present; traditional
and processed sounds from Armenia and Egypt, spoken text, and machine
sounds.
All tracks composed and mixed by Thea Farhadian.
The voice of Komitas (CD 4275) courtesy of Traditional Crossroads.
THEA FARHADIAN & KLAUS KÜRVERS: eXcavations
http://cdbaby.com/cd/theafarhadianklauskurver
Thea Farhadian - Violin
Klaus Kürvers - Bass
Recorded by Klaus Kürvers
Mastered by Myles Boisen at Headless Buddha Mastering Lab
Art - Klaus Kürvers
Design - Nicolas Wiese
www.theafarhadian.com
