Le Poisson Rouge

ALASH are masters of Tuvan throat singing (xöömei), a remarkable technique for singing multiple pitches at the same time. What distinguishes this gifted quartet from earlier generations of Tuvan throat singers is the subtle infusion of modern influences into their traditional music. One can find complex harmonies, western instruments, and contemporary song forms in Alash’s music, but its overall sound and spirit is decidedly Tuvan. 

Trained in traditional Tuvan music since childhood, the Alash musicians studied at Kyzyl Arts College just as Tuva was beginning to open up to the West. They formed a traditional ensemble and won multiple awards for traditional throat singing in international xöömei competitions, both as an ensemble and as individual musicians. At the same time, they paid close attention to new trends coming out of the West. They have borrowed new ideas that mesh well with the sound and feel of traditional Tuvan music, but they have never sacrificed the integrity of their own heritage in an effort to make their music more hip. 

Alash first toured the U.S. under the sponsorship of the Open World Leadership program of the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Arts. Since then they have returned many times, to the delight of American audiences. The Washington Post described their music as “utterly stunning,” quipping that after the performance “audience members picked their jaws up off the floor.” Alash enjoys collaborating with musicians of all stripes. They appear as guest artists on Béla Fleck & the Flecktones’ holiday CD Jingle All the Way (2008), which won a Grammy. The Denver Post remarked, “As electrifying as the Flecktones’ performance was, the band were nearly upstaged by Alash 

Ensemble.” Alash also enjoys a longstanding musical partnership with the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra, and they have collaborated with musicians across the spectrum, from country to classical. Beyond performing, Alash has a passion for teaching and promoting understanding between cultures. Their tours often include workshops where they introduce Tuvan music to students from primary, middle and high schools, colleges, universities, and music conservatories. Children as young as 8 and 9 have learned to throat-sing. As one student exclaimed, “Alash opened my eyes to a whole new world!”

Alash has released three CDs of its own: Alash Live at the Enchanted Garden (2006), Alash (2007), and Buura (2011). The members of Alash are: 

Nachyn Choodu: vocals, byzaanchy, chadagan, igil, xomus. Kyzyl Arts College. First prize for best duo with his wife Shonchalai at the International Xöömei Symposium, 2008. Named Distinguished Artist of Tuva, 2011.

Bady-Dorzhu Ondar: vocals, igil, guitar. Kyzyl Arts College, East Siberia State Academy of Culture and Art. Best soloist, 2005 All-Russian Festival of traditional ensembles and orchestras. Best in Maxim Dakpai xöömei competition, 2006. Named People’s Xöömeizhi, 2007. Grand prize, International Xöömei Symposium, 2008.

Ayan-ool Sam: vocals, doshpuluur, igil, guitar. Republic School of the Arts, Kyzyl Arts College, Moscow State Pedagogical University. First prize, International Xöömei Symposium, 2008.

Ayan Shirizhik: vocals, kengirge, shyngyrash, shoor, murgu, xomus. Kyzyl Arts College, East Siberia State Academy of Culture and Art. Second prize, International Xöömei Symposium, 2008. Named Distinguished Artist of Tuva, 2009.

Sean Quirk: interpreter and manager. Studied music in Tuva on a Fulbright fellowship. Named Distinguished Artist of Tuva, 2008

Brooklyn-based composer and double bassist, Garth Stevenson, draws most of his creative inspiration from the natural landscapes beyond the metropolis in which he has lived for the bulk his twenties. Garth was raised in the mountains of British Columbia by parents that spent all of their free time in the outdoors. Nature became his primary inspiration and the common thread between his life and music. In the past four years, Garth has released two full-length solo albums, informed by his experiences carrying his 150-year-old double bass to the woods, the beach, and the desert. His most recent and critically acclaimed release, Flying, is a seventy-five minute adulation to a recent life- changing trip to Antartica as well as his work playing in yoga classes with Elena Brower for the past three years. Of Flying, iTunes praises, “Garth Stevenson joins the likes of Brian Eno, Sigur Rós, and David Sylvian as a practitioner of this ethereal yet accessible genre... ‘The Southern Sea’ offers the aural equivalent of effortlessly swimming underwater without ever needing to come up for air.”. 

Stevenson’s music is cinematic in quality and has found it’s way into independent films, commercials such as the Barnes and Noble “Nook” campaign, and into Leela, a meditative video game based on the teachings of Deepak Chopra, produced by THQ and Curious Pictures. He is also a featured performer at the Wanderlust Music and Yoga Festivals. Additionally, in 2008, Garth was awarded with the International Society of Bassists composition competition first prize, and subsequently served as a judge for the competition in 2010. He has performed on David Letterman, Craig Fergusson, hundreds of radio stations, at Bonnaroo, and at music festivals in Europe, Japan, Canada, and South America.