Ross Daly & Ensemble (Greece)
Irishman Ross Daly has fully embraced the intricate weave of Eastern and Western influence that runs through the music of Crete, having lived on the island for more than 30 years. He studied Cretan music in addition to the great modal traditions of the Middle East, Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. While most Cretan music is dance music, other genres exist, most notably a special repertoire of extraordinarily beautiful and sophisticated slow songs known as rizitika. These are a star feature of The Circle at the Crossroads, a musical production created by Ross that blends ancient and contemporary musical elements. It references a classical Cretan folk tale of the mystical initiation into playing the lyra, a small three-stringed, pear-shaped, upright knee-fiddle which is the prime instrument of Cretan music. Ross, who has recorded more than 30 albums, performs this musical suite on the Cretan lyra, saz, the African rabab and tarhu. Joining him on lyra is Kelly Thoma (from the Greek city of Piraeus), singer and Cretan laouto player Giorgos Xylouris (the son of Psarantonis, one of Crete’s best known and most innovative musicians) and percussionist Bijan Chemirani, the younger son of illustrious Iranian percussionist Djamchid Chemirani.
Website: http://www.rossdalymusic.com/