San Francisco World Music Festival 2008 Focuses on Global Reeds

The theme of this year’s San Francisco World Music Festival will be "The Reeds Give Way to the Wind." In many cultures throughout the world, the reed is significantly symbolic. Although a seemingly delicate plant, it has the ability to withstand and endure the most brutal storms. It is a timely symbol of endurance in the face of the regional and global challenges that our species on this planet are facing. The festival will take place in November 2008.

This year’s festival programming will feature various reed instruments, such as accordion, suona, and sheng, from several cultures, including Azerbaijani, Chinese, Italian, and Laz. The centerpiece of this year’s festival, which will premiere at the San Francisco Jewish Community Center on November 21st, will be a new Door Dog commissioned stage work called, "The Reeds Give Way to the Wind."

The festival commission will feature master reed artists including Birol Topaloglu (tulum/guda) from the Laz region of Turkey, Zhang Yu (suona) and Wan Peng Guo (sheng) from China, Rahman Asadollahi (garmon) from Azerbaijan, and Riccardo Tesi (melodeon) from Italy, plus Romany musician Rumen Sali Shopov (percussion) from Bulgaria.