Nightingale Soul Call A unique live duet between a nightingale and a Japanese shakuhachi flute, accompanied by shruti box.
Nightingale Soul Call expresses a suspended moment in time in which Adrian Freedman’s shakuhachi met the nightingale, and together with Sam Lee, a meeting of kindred souls took place, through the medium of universal sound and silence. The nightingale is a master of lyrical improvisation and of meaningful silence. Adrian Freedman is a master of the ancient Zen flute, shakuhachi, known for his soulful improvisations, and for the way he integrates sound and silence in his performances.
Nightingale Soul Call was recorded in the middle of the night at Highnam Woods in Gloucestershire. This track sits at the heart of the Kindred Souls album, representative of a truly spontaneous and heartfelt artistic collaboration that cuts through all boundaries of culture, nationality and even species. One heart, one world. The shruti box drone is played in this track by Sam Lee, who plays a unique role in the British music scene. A highly inventive and original singer, folk song interpreter, conservationist and broadcaster, he is the founding inspiration and guiding light behind the ‘Singjng with Nightingales’ project, which aims to raise awareness about the precarious situation facing nightingales in this country, and which brings together the finest musicians in the land to duet with the sweet sounds of the nightingale. Each spring Sam Lee hosts a series of live events in which he takes invited musicians to step silently into the woods as darkness falls, to hear the nightingales sing in thrillingly close proximity, and to sing and play alongside.
The Kindred Souls album, to be released in June 2021, features Adrian Freedman and 20 other musicians from five continents. Recordings of spontaneous connections made with musicians around the planet.The ‘Kindred Souls’ of this project are musicians like Adrian who have been drawn to world music, meditation music, medicine music and devotional music from various traditions around the world. The encounters between these musicians and Adrian reflect a spontaneous, intuitive musical flow, in which music is celebrated as a universal language of the heart, transcending cultural boundaries. Some of the recordings are from the studio and some from live performances.
SAM LEE Bio Mercury Prize nominated Folk singer, song collector, promoter (of BBC award winning Nest Collective) radio host, TV personality, teacher and animateur, Sam released his debut album “Ground Of Its Own’ comprised of songs learned 1st hand from the Gypsy Traveler community. The recording is a new musical manifesto, reflecting Sam's unique artistic journey. Winner of the 2011 Arts Foundation Award, he is fast becoming accepted as a new pioneer, defining the sound, sight and texture of folksong today. Likewise his band 'Sam Lee & Friends' perform unconventional and contemporary interpretations challenging all preconceptions of what ‘traditional folk’ should sound like.
More on Adrian Freedman:
Website / https://adrianfreedman.com/
Bandcamp / https://adrianfreedman.bandcamp.com/