Important New CD: Siwan, "Hafla"
David Shasha
Jon Balke/Siwan: Hafla (ECM 2726)
By: Tyron Grillo
Hafla is the third go-around for keyboardist-composer Jan Balke and his group, Siwan. Taking inspiration from the cultural melting pot that was al-Andalus yet retying those threads into a friendship bracelet of striking originality, Balke and company retain the character of each idiom while achieving an overall design. Through the talents of Algerian singer Mona Boutchebak, Turkish kamancheh virtuoso Derya Turkan, Iranian tombak master Pedram Khavar Zamini, Norwegian percussionist Helge Norbakken, and violinist Bjarte Eike and his Barokksolistine, Balke summons the utmost familiarity from places and times that far outweigh our experiences as citizens of the 21st century. And while coronavirus restrictions prevented the ensemble from recording in the studio all at once, one would never guess the cutting and pasting required to bring the album to its present form in light of its hermetic coherence.
Balke’s compositions constitute the entire program, save for Boutchebak’s “Mirada Furtiva,” recalling a love so strong that it can never overstep the boundaries of modesty that keep it from consuming itself. Setting the poetry of Ibn Zaydun (1003-1071), the singer accompanies herself on the kwitra (Algerian lute), joined by low stirrings of wires and bows. Zaydun’s lover and the Ummayad princess of Córdoba, Wallada bint al-Mustakfi (1010-1091), is the verbal force behind the program’s opener, “Tarraquab” (Visit). Its lilting character immediately transports us into a cinematic world of strings and percussion. Boutchebak evokes flowing transpositions of bodies into spirits and back again, scenting the evening air with yearnings for touch.
Other poets who find themselves redrawn beneath the Siwan overlay include Ibn Sara As-Santarini (Santarém, 1043-1123), Ibn Sa’id al-Maghribi (Alcalá la Real, 1213-1286), Abu Bakr al-Turtushi (Tortosa, 1059-1126 or 1127), and Ibn Hazm (Córdoba, 994-1064), all of whom express an intimate relationship with that most sensuous interim before the dawn. Whether in the bright harmonies of “La Estrella Fugaz” (The Shooting Star) or the gentle strength of “Diálogo en la Noche” (Dialogue in the Night), we encounter selves divided by pining and expectation. And in “Enamorado de Júpiter” (In Love with Jupiter), the gloom of unrequited affections unfurls a canvas for the brush of a pained lyric:
Knowing well that I am the full moon in the clear sky,
You fell in love with Jupiter, the darkest planet.
Braiding the invisible forces of “Arrihu Aqwadu Ma Yakunu Li-Annaha” and the seeking qualities of “Uquállibu” (Absence), Boutchebak attaches threads of continuity between burning hearts that have only the moon as their messenger. Even the two instrumental interludes, “Línea Oscura” and “Saeta,” seem to communicate in verse, so that when images as powerful as those expressed throughout “Wadadtu” (Is There No Way), in which the desire to become one with another achieves fiery tension, rise to the surface, it is all we can do to hold on to the rhythms for assurance of reaching the shore. As violist Per Buhre sings this song in English against a wash of strings and kamancheh to bid us farewell, the linguistic change of clothing starches the ears, making us realize just how far our tongues have yet to travel.
From ECM Reviews, April 17, 2022
Jon Balke: Siwan: Hafla
By: David Bruggink
A large appeal of ECM Records has always been its encouragement of cross-cultural collaboration. Across countries and genres, listeners and critics alike have reveled in records from Codona (1979) to Le Pas du Chat Noir (2001), Chants, Hymns and Dances (2004) and Arco Iris (2011). There is joy in seeing musicians from diverse backgrounds come together to have their compositions treated with ECM's trademark recording quality.
Norwegian composer, keyboardist, and percussionist Jon Balke's Siwan project, now in its third incarnation, has seen multiple arrangements of performers in its ranks. First release Siwan (2009) notably featured Moroccan vocalist Amina Alaoui and trumpeter Jon Hassell; for Nahnou Houm (2017), Alaoui was replaced by Mona Boutchebak, an Algerian oudist and vocalist, who reprises her role on Siwan's latest, Hafla. The orchestra is further filled out by Norwegian drummer Helge Norbakken, Turkish kemençe master Derya Türkan , Iranian tombak player Pedram Khavar Zamini and baroque violinist Bjarte Eike. Given the size of this ensemble, it is perhaps surprising that Hafla unfolds with such subtlety, a quality shared with other Balke releases. One has the sense of stepping lightly through an ornate palace in the Ottoman period, so profoundly do the instrumentation and timbres immerse the listener. Balke's music also has a tendency towards the cerebral and experimental (see 2016's Warp on ECM), yet it never fails to captivate. Hafla provides glimpses into his compositional skills while retaining an atmosphere of mysticism and adventure.
A defining feature of the album is the glissando of strings in the background, which whip about as though buffeted by desert winds and bring to mind Arvo Pärt's "Orient & Occident." Like Hafla's predecessors, the overriding moods here are of mystery, curiosity, seriousness and passion, and Boutchebak's vocals provide the album's beating heart. At times she speaks softly but firmly, as though reciting an esoteric incantation (the lyrics on Hafla are drawn from the writings of Wallada bint al-Mustakfi, an Ummayad princess and poet of the 11th century). At other times she sings lithely and surpassingly sweetly. On "Mirada Furtiva," she is more forceful and earnest, her voice sweeping atop a spare melody of oud and abstract electronic pulses until it is gradually overtaken in a roiling ambient sea (see also Being Dufay, 2009's innovative meeting between John Potter and Ambrose Field, also on ECM).
There are many moments that are in good company with the forlorn Arabic jazz of Anouar Brahem on Barzakh (ECM, 1991) or Astrakan Café (ECM, 2000), or the aforementioned pan-Mediterranean collaboration, Arco Iris. The piercing melodies of Türkan's kemençe also have a certain kinship with the lyra of fellow ECM artist, Sokratis Sinopoulis.
Hafla is an enthralling document of cross-cultural collaboration, of distinctive artistic voices presenting a singular, compelling vision.
From All About Jazz, August 16, 2022
Jon Balke, Siwan - Hafla Review
By: Ferell Aubre
Norwegian pianist Jon Balke is back with his latest ECM Records release called Siwan – Hafla. This is the third album from the Norwegian keyboardist-composer-arranger’s ensemble Siwan, launched in 2007. Siwan celebrates the concept of coexistence and cooperation, making a case for the positive attributes of cultural diversity as it looks back into history to find inspiration and models for shared works. The legends and the poetry of al-Andalus continue to inspire Balke and company. The ensemble is Balke, keyboards, electronics, tombak; Mona Boutchebak, vocals, quitra; Derya Turkan, kemençe; Bjarte Eike, baroque violin; Helge Norbakken, percussion; Pedram Khavar Zamini, tombak; Per Buhre, vocals, viola; and the Barokksolistene string orchestra. Balke brings many musical aspects with his writing for this unique ensemble with many textures, melodies, and rhythms through the twelve compositions.
“Tarraquab” opens with dancing pizzicato string sounds and atmospheric swells with building percussion. The Middle-Eastern colors are enhanced with sensual singing and speaking. Balke creates a space of intrigue and textures with his ensemble and the string orchestra. The strings provide many colors as the percussion and electronics give depth and interest. Balke’s setting of lyrics by Wallada bint al-Mustakfi, the free-thinking 11th-century Ummayad princess of Cordoba and the lover of Ibn Zaydun, the great poet of al-Andalus, matches the ensemble’s mood and colors and makes for an excellent opening selection. “The story of their relationship is legendary,” Balke notes. “And Wallada also wrote some great, short, and precise poems. This time, we were looking for poetry descriptive of life as it was lived in that period. Somebody made the observation that the phenomenon of coexistence begins in the neighbourhood when someone needs help. It begins in the queue to buy bread. On that kind of basic level. It’s a good perspective, I think.”
“Saeta” is a beautiful melody centered around the string orchestra and Turkan’s haunting kamancheh. The percussion is supportive and builds complex layers of support and energy. The counterpoint is very rewarding and adds another layer of complexity and relevance. With the musicians coming from diverse traditions, Balke has to be resourceful in his presentation of new pieces. “I’ve had to find ways to write new music for musicians who don’t normally read scores. For the Barokksolistene everything is written down. For the others, usually, I record demo versions of the material, with me playing percussion and keyboards and sometimes cello so that everybody has at least a sketch of the songs.”
Siwan – Hafla is a celebration of an amalgamation of many cultures and styles. The Middle Eastern influence is exotic, and the multiple languages add richness. Balke’s music vision is concise and transfers beautifully to this tapestry of colors and emotions.
From The Jazz Word, April 26, 2022
Jon Balke / Siwan - Hafla
By: Filipe Freitas
Norwegian avant-garde keyboardist and composer Jon Balke returns to his world music-influenced project Siwan after an interesting solo album released in 2020 called Discourses. Following up the releases of Siwan in 2009 and Nahnou Houm in 2017, Hafla marks his third outing with this international collective, which hybridizes baroque, Andalusian and improvised music with dazzling originality.
Working with the words of 11th-century Andalusian poet Wallada bint al-Mustafki, the ensemble steps into world fusion erudition with the hypnotic “Terraquab”, narrated by the Algerian singer Mona Boutchebak. The versatile vocalist sings in Arabic and Andalusian Spanish on “Arrihu Aqwadu Ma Yakunu Li-Annaha”, where evocative strings fill the spaces left by her voice.
A trio of pieces delivered with a three time feel and relevant arrangements catch the ear. They are “Enamorado de Jupiter”, where the kemence of Derya Turkan stands out; “Saeta”, an instrumental number with aesthetic contrapuntal discernment; and “Uquallibu”, a poetic stunner entrancingly described with restrained dynamic range and bass lines that shimmer rather than pulse.
Faithful to his principle, Balke celebrates the concept of coexistence and cooperation between different people with an elegant intersection of musical cultures. “Linea Oscura” emerges with a spellbinding Middle Eastern tinge, being propelled by the incredibly rhythmic carpet laid down by percussionists Helge Norbakken and Pedram Khavar Zamini. Built with intimate detail, “Mirada Furtiva” showcases the capacity of Boutchabek, who composed it, to bring together the voice and the Algerian lute into harmonious consonance. Here, Balke provides a surprising counterpane of enveloping keyboard. The variations might seem minimal, but “Visita” carries a much more commercial bait than the dramatic lament “Is There No Way” (sung by violist Per Buhre), or the cinematic impressionism of “Wadadtu”.
All things considered, Hafla won’t necessarily have an impact on everyone, but that doesn’t lessen the discipline and significance of Balke’s achievement.
From Jazz Trail, April 19, 2022
Siwan Discography
Siwan, “Hafla” (2022)
https://ecmreviews.com/2022/07/04/jon-balke-siwan-hafla-ecm-2726/
https://www.ecmrecords.com/shop/1643116566/hafla-jon-balke-siwan
https://www.amazon.com/Hafla-Jon-Balke-Siwan/dp/B09VCS3J1L
Siwan, “Nahnou Houm” (2017)
https://ecmreviews.com/2019/07/25/nahnou-houm/
https://www.amazon.com/Siwan-Nahnou-Houm-Jon-Balke/dp/B075G139TN
https://www.ecmrecords.com/shop/1505219806/nahnou-houm-jon-balke-siwan-jon-balke-siwan
‘Siwan’ (2009)
https://ecmreviews.com/2014/01/26/siwan/
https://www.amazon.com/Siwan-Balke-Amina-Alaoui-Hassell/dp/B002E5218S