Nowruz Festival
TL;DR:
Who: Bajar, Kefaya & Elaha Soroor, Where: Jazz Club Moods, When: 22.03.2025
Celebrating the arrival of spring and the new year for the third time at the Jazz Club Moods.
Understand
Nowruz
Nowruz, is the celebration of the arrival of spring and the new year according to ancient Persian calendars. Nowruz, meaning «new day», is an ancestral festivity marking the first day of spring and the renewal of nature. It includes rituals, ceremonies, and cultural events, as well as the enjoyment of a special meal with loved ones. New clothes are worn, visits are made to family and friends, and gifts, especially for children, are exchanged.
Celebrated for over 3,000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, and other regions, it promotes values of peace and solidarity between generations and within families as well as reconciliation.
Bajar
Yıldırım (founding member of the internationally acclaimed Kardeş Türküler), blends folk, rock, and traditional eastern tunes: a project born in urban Istanbul’s hybrid neighborhoods and streets.
Singing in both Kurdish and Turkish, the band creates music, that is deeply political, and challenges the ongoing ghettoization of minorities, racial and cultural discrimination, inequality, democracy, and freedom.
Perhaps, this is best seen in their cover version of «They Don’t Care About Us», which they have recorded with Defjen, a daf-percussion-collective from Istanbul. A tour de force: reinterpreting and blending Michael Jackson’s masterpiece with Eastern tunes, switching Brazilian percussions with the Daf, and adding Vedat’s strong Kurdish voice, the song is a call - once again and after more than a quarter of a century - for freedom and justice.
Kefaya & Elaha Soroor
Kefaya & Elaha Soroor is an award-winning collective, blending synth-rock, post-punk, and jazz psychedelia with the rich textures of folk music from Afghanistan, creating a sound that transcends borders and genres. Praised by The Guardian as "one of the most intriguing new bands of the year," Kefaya followed the success of their debut album Radio International by collaborating with Hazara folk singer Elaha Soroor on their acclaimed 2019 album Songs of Our Mothers (Bella Union); a bold reframing of women's songs from Afghanistan, that earned global tours and recognition. Their collaboration continues with their highly anticipated forthcoming album.
Elaha Soroor is a singer, composer, and activist whose artistry amplifies the voices of women and marginalized communities. Kefaya was formed by London-based musicians Al MacSween, Giuliano Modarelli, and Joost Hendrickx.
Known for their high-energy live shows and virtuosic musicianship, Kefaya have performed in venues across the UK, India, France, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Australia and New Zealand. They have supported the likes of Vieux Farke Toure, 47 Soul, Omar Souleyman and Hariprasad Chaurasia. They have performed at renowned festivals such as WOMAD, Latitude Festival, SXSW as well as numerous political events, such as Amnesty International HO, Marxism Festival and fundraisers for asylum seekers, Palestinian rights and women's rights organizations. The band has also collaborated individually with artists such as Cinematic Orchestra, Talvin Singh, Nubya Garcia, Submotion Orchestra, and many more.
Get in
Jazz Club Moods
Schiffbauplatz
8005 Zürich
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