San Francisco World Music Festival 2007

San Francisco (California), USA – The San Francisco World Music Festival 2007 will celebrate its Eighth Anniversary with an exciting gathering of some of the most interesting musicians in the world. For the past six years, the San Francisco World Music Festival has commissioned musicians and artists from different countries to collaborate together to create a new evening-length performance as the centerpiece premiere of the festival.
 
 This Fall, Door Dog Music Productions will present its eighth season of the San Francisco World Music Festival, themed “The Lutes of the Deserts and the Mountains: An exploration of the ancient roots of music”. Master lute players from around the world- from the high mountains of Tibet, to the deserts of Africa- will be invited to share the mysteries of their traditions. We will attempt to develop connections between artists and cultures to their habitats in which they live. We will also highlight the uniqueness of the materials from which their instruments have been made, and the important effect this has had on the development of their music.The festival will run from September 23rd through October 7th in venues throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. At the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco on September 23rd, the festival will kick off with the centerpiece of the festival, a commissioned world premiere entitled, “Here Comes the Sea Followed by an Ocean”, a tribute to Rumi. The legendary Persian mystical poet Attar, whose own work is said to have influenced the great Rumi, spoke these words. These words were spoken when he saw Rumi following behind his father as they made their way west to Anatolia from an unsettled home in Central Asia. This man’s journey, in metaphor and reality is brought to life in present day, as the historical Rumi was a citizen of all the contemporary world’s hot spots: Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Azerbaijan.
 
 This newly commissioned work will present new compositions by Azerbaijani master kamancha musician and composer Imamyar Hasanov. The production will feature traditional lute masters, including, Afghani lute master Aziz Herawi, Azerbaijani tar virtuoso Rufat Hasanov, Chinese pipa master Liu He Cheng, Chinese erhu virtuoso Zhang Xiao Feng, Iranian master percussionist Pejman Hadadi, Israeli oud virtuoso Yair Dalal, and more. Lutes from the various countries include the rubab, tar, kamancha, pipa, erhu, oud, accompanied by frame drums. These artists represent a diversity of life experience yet the influence of Rumi has colored each of their musical traditions and aesthetic. This cross-cultural collaboration is paramount to Rumi’s transcendent and universally humanist message and in keeping with our mission to create a framework for master artists to meet.
 
 With 2007 declared by UNESCO as the year of Rumi, to commemorate 800 years since his birth, we also pause to reflect on this staggering milestone. The staged production will not be a literal celebration of Mowlana Jalaleddin Rumi, the historic figure and his life, but pull from his brilliant writings, ghazals (sung love poems) to create a contemporary look at these troubled regions, its inhabitants, their cultural vibrancy and its contemporary expression by artists in a fresh cross cultural approach.
 
 Continuing in our efforts to introduce cultures, music and artists to the larger community we will present several concerts and community events. On September 25, we will present in association with the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco Israeli-Moroccan singer SMADER LEVI singing pan-Mediterranean songs in Arabic, Hebrew and Spanish. On September 26h, there will be an ARTIST RESIDENCY PROGRAM at Alice Fong Yu School featuring Bulgarian-Roma tambura master RUMEN SALI SHOPOV, who will work with the school’s Chinese youth ensemble and present an evening concert to the community. From September 27th-29th, there will be a series of concerts at the Presidio Chapel focused on lutes of several countries and cultures, including TECHUNG & CHAKSAMPA TIBETAN OPERA & DANCE COMPANY on September 27, Indian sarod master ALAM KHAN on September 28, Afghani lute master AZIZ HERAWI on September 29. The festival will close on October 7 with an afternoon of North & South Indian music featuring Indian youth vocalist GAAYATRI KAUNDINAYA and the YOUTH ENSEMBLE OF TRINITY CENTER FOR MUSIC at Villa Montalvo in Saratoga in South Bay.