| Simin Tander — Where Water Travels Home |
Simin Tander — Where Water Travels Home
Location: Germany
Album release: 2014
Recording date: June 2013
Record Label: Jazzhaus Records
Duration: 56:14
Tracks:
01. Yau Tar De Grewan (5:23)
02. Above The Ground (5:13)
03. Behind The Curtain (3:43)
04. Where Would I Fly To If I Could (7:50)
05. Little Song (2:42)
06. Far (3:16)
07. De Kor Arman (4:55)
08. Larsha Nengrahar Ta (4:13)
09. Dark Woods (4:12)
10. Our Silent Storm (4:28)
11. Water (1:27)
12. La Chanson Des Vieux Amants (3:43)
13. Traveling On (5:09)
Personnel:
ζ Simin Tander: voice;
ζ Jereon Van Vliet: piano, electronics;
ζ Cord Heineking: double bass;
ζ Alex Simu: clarinet (7);
ζ Niti Ranian Biswas: tabla (8). drums;
ζ Ana Gazzola: percussion;
ζ Sheila Jordan: guest vocals.
Credits:
Ξ Niti Ranjan Biswas Guest Artist, Tabla
Ξ Jacques Brel Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Steve Brookland Photography
Ξ Christian Heck Engineer
Ξ Cord Heineking Composer, Double Bass, Engineer
Ξ Peter Hille Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Gérard Jouannest Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Matthias Klegraf Artwork
Ξ Etienne Nillesen Composer, Drums
Ξ Alex Simu Clarinet, Guest Artist
Ξ Mina Tander Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Qudus Tander Poetry
Ξ Simin Tander Arranger, Composer, Lyricist, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals
Ξ Traditional Composer
Ξ Darius Van Helfteren Mastering
Ξ Jeroen van Vliet Composer, Electronics, Piano
Ξ Chris Weeda Engineer, Mixing
REVIEW
By IAN PATTERSON, Published: June 11, 2014 | SCORE: ****
Ξ A typical jazz format perhaps, but the delivery on Simon Tander's second CD is anything but typical. As on her memorable debut Wagma (Neuklang Records, 2011), Tander sings in various languages — English, French — and in her improvised language. Here, however, Tander explores her roots by singing in pashto — her Afghan father's language — with mesmerizing results. On Wagma, Tander already sounded conceptually and musically fairly rounded, but Where Water Travels Home comes across as a more mature and personal work, one that reaffirms Tander's credentials as an original contemporary singer.
Ξ Tander casts her seductive spell on the opening number, "Yau Tar De Grewan" (A Thread from The Collar), a gorgeous arrangement of one of three Afghan poems sung in pashto. Pianist Jeroen van Vliet, bassist Cord Heineking and drummer Etienne Nillesen provide perfectly weighted support to Tander's emotive delivery on this ode to the birth of love:
Ξ “I turned into dew and slept on the morning flower
Tired and weary, I slept in the lap of your sight
Today you took me to the skies with one smile”
Ξ Kabul street sounds provide sympathetic background to "De Kor Arman" ("The Desire for Home"), a slow–burning pashto blues tale. Guest musician Alex Simu's softly voiced clarinet brings a yearning quality to this ambiguous love story. On the upbeat "Larsha Nengrahar Ta" ("Go to Nengrahar and Bring me a Black Dress") Tander's voice dances, driven by guest tablaist Niti Ranjan Biswas and Nillesen's rhythmic urgency. Ξ The three pashto–sung songs — poetic in origin and in delivery — mark a bold departure for Tander but the emotive depths that she harnesses so convincingly make these among the CD's standout tracks.
Ξ Three tracks feature Tander's invented language: on "Behind the Curtain," thumb–piano delicacy contrasts with Tander's powerful chanson–like delivery; on "Little Song" a damped–piano motif and gently pulsing bass waltz with Tander, whose soft plosives and cooing seduce like a lullaby; the quartet–composed "Far" revolves around Tander's konnakol–inspired improvisations as the quartet's smoking intensity threatens to burst into flames. With the exception of "Behind the Curtain" where Van Vliet stretches out, conventional solos are rationed and instead a subtle elasticity in the music's individual and collective contours reigns throughout.
Ξ Several tracks feature lyrics by Tander's sister Mina Tander; on "Above The Ground," however, it's Tander's soaring wordless cry during the song's surging finale that hits the gut; "Dark Woods" is a brooding, sensual song of seduction; Van Vliet's hypnotic piano mantra forms the spine of "Traveling On," a melodically and emotively alluring ballad. Elsewhere, "Where Would I Fly to If I Could" shifts episodically between powerful orchestral passages, Tander's simple narrative and her more dramatic improvisations. "Our Silent Storm" is an achingly beautiful ballad that could have come from Leonard Cohen's bluesiest pen, while "La Chanson des Vieux Amants" sees Tander tackles Jacques Briel's bitter–sweet love song with requisite intimacy.
Ξ Tander's beguiling voice holds center stage on these haunting songs of love's vicissitudes, but her wonderfully empathetic trio is no less vital a part of the equation. Ξ A palpable group chemistry pervades these thirteen tracks, whose considerable charms grow through repeated listens. Poetic, lyrical and uplifting, Where Water Travels Home is a strong contender for vocal album of the year. By IAN PATTERSON :: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/
Simin Tander
Ξ “A shining diamant.“ Jazzenzo (NL)
She is one of the most amazing personalities in young European jazz. With her enchantingly tender and equally expressive, masterful voice Simin Tander builds bridges between occidental jazz and arabesque–like vocal flights, between song–writing experiment, chanson and intimate ballad. Along with her quartet, the German–Afghan singer draws a fascinating route to her Mid–Eastern heritage and into the depths of her soul in her second CD.
Ξ “It is a journey — to myself, through the world of my emotions and thoughts and to my Afghan roots”, explains Simin Tander. Where Water Travels Home does not show us a conventional road movie: imaginative and labyrinthine, and therefore all the more compelling for the listener, are the sound routes which this water takes, and rather than the compass of the mind it follows the path of the heart.
Ξ “Where water travels home” — this is no abstract image. For the daughter of an Afghan journalist/poet and a German teacher, it rather means the actually experienced search for her identity. As a mature singer, she is now posing the question of the where from and where to in her second CD, which turns out to be a masterpiece of song–writing with an improvisational touch. Simin Tander and her marvellous quartet build dramatic tension over the course of 13 stations, traversing past and present in a free–flowing dramaturgy.
Ξ In the past few years Simin has become one of the rising stars of the Dutch and German jazz scene. Her performances at the North Sea Jazz Festival, the BIMHUIS, the prestigious Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Berlin Jazzmeeting, Women In Jazz Fesitval /Halle, JAZZAHEAD /Bremen and her concerts with Dutch Jazz star Eric Vloeimans have received rave reviews.
Ξ Beside the Netherlands and Germany Simin is developing an internationally recognized reputation with performances at the Bohemia Jazz Fest (Czech Republic), Catania Jazz Festival (Italy), Madrid Jazz Festival (Spain), OCT LOFT Festival (China), Hong Kong Jazz Festival, the Jarasum Jazzfestival (South Korea) and many more.
Her name is Persian and a beautiful promise for her future: “silvery shining”.
Website: http://www.simintander.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/SIMIN/37007194455
Press / Agent:
_____________________________________________________________
| Simin Tander — Where Water Travels Home |
Location: Germany
Album release: 2014
Recording date: June 2013
Record Label: Jazzhaus Records
Duration: 56:14
Tracks:
01. Yau Tar De Grewan (5:23)
02. Above The Ground (5:13)
03. Behind The Curtain (3:43)
04. Where Would I Fly To If I Could (7:50)
05. Little Song (2:42)
06. Far (3:16)
07. De Kor Arman (4:55)
08. Larsha Nengrahar Ta (4:13)
09. Dark Woods (4:12)
10. Our Silent Storm (4:28)
11. Water (1:27)
12. La Chanson Des Vieux Amants (3:43)
13. Traveling On (5:09)
Personnel:
ζ Simin Tander: voice;
ζ Jereon Van Vliet: piano, electronics;
ζ Cord Heineking: double bass;
ζ Alex Simu: clarinet (7);
ζ Niti Ranian Biswas: tabla (8). drums;
ζ Ana Gazzola: percussion;
ζ Sheila Jordan: guest vocals.
Credits:
Ξ Niti Ranjan Biswas Guest Artist, Tabla
Ξ Jacques Brel Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Steve Brookland Photography
Ξ Christian Heck Engineer
Ξ Cord Heineking Composer, Double Bass, Engineer
Ξ Peter Hille Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Gérard Jouannest Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Matthias Klegraf Artwork
Ξ Etienne Nillesen Composer, Drums
Ξ Alex Simu Clarinet, Guest Artist
Ξ Mina Tander Composer, Lyricist
Ξ Qudus Tander Poetry
Ξ Simin Tander Arranger, Composer, Lyricist, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals
Ξ Traditional Composer
Ξ Darius Van Helfteren Mastering
Ξ Jeroen van Vliet Composer, Electronics, Piano
Ξ Chris Weeda Engineer, Mixing
REVIEW
By IAN PATTERSON, Published: June 11, 2014 | SCORE: ****
Ξ A typical jazz format perhaps, but the delivery on Simon Tander's second CD is anything but typical. As on her memorable debut Wagma (Neuklang Records, 2011), Tander sings in various languages — English, French — and in her improvised language. Here, however, Tander explores her roots by singing in pashto — her Afghan father's language — with mesmerizing results. On Wagma, Tander already sounded conceptually and musically fairly rounded, but Where Water Travels Home comes across as a more mature and personal work, one that reaffirms Tander's credentials as an original contemporary singer.
Ξ Tander casts her seductive spell on the opening number, "Yau Tar De Grewan" (A Thread from The Collar), a gorgeous arrangement of one of three Afghan poems sung in pashto. Pianist Jeroen van Vliet, bassist Cord Heineking and drummer Etienne Nillesen provide perfectly weighted support to Tander's emotive delivery on this ode to the birth of love:
Ξ “I turned into dew and slept on the morning flower
Tired and weary, I slept in the lap of your sight
Today you took me to the skies with one smile”
Ξ Kabul street sounds provide sympathetic background to "De Kor Arman" ("The Desire for Home"), a slow–burning pashto blues tale. Guest musician Alex Simu's softly voiced clarinet brings a yearning quality to this ambiguous love story. On the upbeat "Larsha Nengrahar Ta" ("Go to Nengrahar and Bring me a Black Dress") Tander's voice dances, driven by guest tablaist Niti Ranjan Biswas and Nillesen's rhythmic urgency. Ξ The three pashto–sung songs — poetic in origin and in delivery — mark a bold departure for Tander but the emotive depths that she harnesses so convincingly make these among the CD's standout tracks.
Ξ Three tracks feature Tander's invented language: on "Behind the Curtain," thumb–piano delicacy contrasts with Tander's powerful chanson–like delivery; on "Little Song" a damped–piano motif and gently pulsing bass waltz with Tander, whose soft plosives and cooing seduce like a lullaby; the quartet–composed "Far" revolves around Tander's konnakol–inspired improvisations as the quartet's smoking intensity threatens to burst into flames. With the exception of "Behind the Curtain" where Van Vliet stretches out, conventional solos are rationed and instead a subtle elasticity in the music's individual and collective contours reigns throughout.
Ξ Several tracks feature lyrics by Tander's sister Mina Tander; on "Above The Ground," however, it's Tander's soaring wordless cry during the song's surging finale that hits the gut; "Dark Woods" is a brooding, sensual song of seduction; Van Vliet's hypnotic piano mantra forms the spine of "Traveling On," a melodically and emotively alluring ballad. Elsewhere, "Where Would I Fly to If I Could" shifts episodically between powerful orchestral passages, Tander's simple narrative and her more dramatic improvisations. "Our Silent Storm" is an achingly beautiful ballad that could have come from Leonard Cohen's bluesiest pen, while "La Chanson des Vieux Amants" sees Tander tackles Jacques Briel's bitter–sweet love song with requisite intimacy.
Ξ Tander's beguiling voice holds center stage on these haunting songs of love's vicissitudes, but her wonderfully empathetic trio is no less vital a part of the equation. Ξ A palpable group chemistry pervades these thirteen tracks, whose considerable charms grow through repeated listens. Poetic, lyrical and uplifting, Where Water Travels Home is a strong contender for vocal album of the year. By IAN PATTERSON :: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/
Simin Tander
Ξ “A shining diamant.“ Jazzenzo (NL)
She is one of the most amazing personalities in young European jazz. With her enchantingly tender and equally expressive, masterful voice Simin Tander builds bridges between occidental jazz and arabesque–like vocal flights, between song–writing experiment, chanson and intimate ballad. Along with her quartet, the German–Afghan singer draws a fascinating route to her Mid–Eastern heritage and into the depths of her soul in her second CD.
Ξ “It is a journey — to myself, through the world of my emotions and thoughts and to my Afghan roots”, explains Simin Tander. Where Water Travels Home does not show us a conventional road movie: imaginative and labyrinthine, and therefore all the more compelling for the listener, are the sound routes which this water takes, and rather than the compass of the mind it follows the path of the heart.
Ξ “Where water travels home” — this is no abstract image. For the daughter of an Afghan journalist/poet and a German teacher, it rather means the actually experienced search for her identity. As a mature singer, she is now posing the question of the where from and where to in her second CD, which turns out to be a masterpiece of song–writing with an improvisational touch. Simin Tander and her marvellous quartet build dramatic tension over the course of 13 stations, traversing past and present in a free–flowing dramaturgy.
Ξ In the past few years Simin has become one of the rising stars of the Dutch and German jazz scene. Her performances at the North Sea Jazz Festival, the BIMHUIS, the prestigious Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Berlin Jazzmeeting, Women In Jazz Fesitval /Halle, JAZZAHEAD /Bremen and her concerts with Dutch Jazz star Eric Vloeimans have received rave reviews.
Ξ Beside the Netherlands and Germany Simin is developing an internationally recognized reputation with performances at the Bohemia Jazz Fest (Czech Republic), Catania Jazz Festival (Italy), Madrid Jazz Festival (Spain), OCT LOFT Festival (China), Hong Kong Jazz Festival, the Jarasum Jazzfestival (South Korea) and many more.
Her name is Persian and a beautiful promise for her future: “silvery shining”.
Website: http://www.simintander.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/SIMIN/37007194455
Press / Agent:
_____________________________________________________________