THIS WEEK WE'RE PROUD TO WELCOME
ADILEI & THE CHAMGELIANI SISTERS
AND
SPENCER & RAINS

Ensemble Adilei performs traditional Georgian polyphonic songs and chants. The group’s main passion lies in the songs from the province of Guria in Western Georgia, though other regions are also represented in their repertoire. Gurian music has often been compared to jazz, because improvisation is its main component, and all the voice parts move independently of each other, creating contrapuntal polyphony. Gurian song is also characterized by krimanchuli, a yodeling technique often present in the upper voice. For the members of Adilei singing is the primary mode of communication with the world: it is more of a lifestyle than a performance practice and is not just relegated to official concerts. They sing every time they gather, wherever that may be.

They are joined on this tour by their frequent collaborators, the Chamgeliani sisters, Ana and Madona, who specialize in songs from the mountainous province of Svaneti, where they grew up. Georgian female musicians are poorly represented abroad, and these women are nothing short of a treasure, especially with respect to their deep knowledge of the contexts and traditions that surround the songs they perform and Ana's virtuosic abilities on the ch'uniri (a 3-string bowed viol, traditionally played in Svaneti and surrounding provinces).

Tricia Spencer & Howard Rains are fiddlers and singers who preserve and build upon the traditions of their home states of Texas and Kansas. The husband and wife duo are known for their distinct twin fiddling and close-knit vocal harmony. Both multi-instrumentalists, they are steeped in family musical tradition and are dedicated to the preservation, performance, and sharing of old time music. They are also both artists, Howard in watercolor and Tricia in pen and ink, and their artwork weaves in closely with their music.

$10-$20