For those unaware, the spirited New York City-based ensemble East of the River debuts on AVIE with Ija Mia: Music of the Sephardic Diaspora.

Directed by the dynamic duo of internationally renowned recorder virtuosos (The New York Times) Daphna Mor (regular collaborator with Apollo’s Fire) and Nina Stern, the album is inspired by love and commemoration of the musicians’ collective cultural backgrounds - Nina’s Venetian Jewish ancestry, and Daphna’s Ladino heritage.

Spanning a vast range of Sephardic folk and traditional musics - stories and dances, prayers and anthems - Ija Mia is by turns haunting, soulful and exuberant.

Daphna and Nina’s cosmopolitan collaborators include an astonishing assortment of musicians including renowned Armenian-American oud player Ara Dinkjian, Silk Road percussionist Shane Shanahan, the phenomenal Israeli bassist Tal Mashiach, and Palestinian multi-instrumentalist Zafer Tawil on qanun, violin, and percussion.

1. Ija Mia (traditional)
2. Adio Kerida
3. Porke Yorach
4. Ein Keloheinu
5. Anzi dice la nuestra novia
6. Oud Taksim
7. Achot Ketana
8. Yigdal
9. Kürdi Taksim
10. Solakzade Mehmet Hemdemi: Kürdi Peşrev
11. Shir Hashirim
12. Sultan Abdülaziz: Hicaz Sirto

This imaginative and wholly evoking new recording opens on the euphoric vibrancy of the titular Ija Mia (traditional) and then proceeds to bring us the more sedately paced Adio Kerida, the haunting Porke Yorach, the drum-led, veritably ethereal Ein Keloheinu, and both the upbeat hipsway of Anzi dice la nuestra novia and the stoic natured Oud Taksim.

Along next is the all-encompassing Achot Ketana and the robust Yigdal, and they are in turn followed by the stellar Kürdi Taksim, the sweeping Solakzade Mehmet Hemdemi: Kürdi Peşrev, the album rounding out on the emboldened Shir Hashirim, closing on the flirtatiously delightful Sultan Abdülaziz: Hicaz Sirto.

Musicians:
Nina Stern (recorders, chalumeau)
Daphna Mor (voice, recorders)
East of the River

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com

www.eastoftherivermusic.com