Stellamara - The Seven Valleys

Rising from within Turkish, Arabic, Balkan, Medieval European and Persian musical traditions, Stellamara expresses sublime devotion to the music of eastern cultures with extraordinarily beautiful vocals and instrumentation.

"Stellamara is a Bay Area band creating a world music of the imagination: filtered through eastern European refrains, spun in Persian grooves, blended in medieval modalities, and supercharged by San Franciscan world music sensibilities. All this is centered by the vocal incantations of Sonja Drakulich, who recalls singers like Vas's Azam Ali and Lumin's Irina Mikhailova. But while they sing in an imaginary supralingua, Drakulich sings real words. Much of Stellamara's music and lyrics are based on traditional melodies and sung in the original languages, such as the Bulgarian lament "Zablejalo mi Agance" and the love-torn Hungarian cry of "Szerelem." Drakulich's diaphanous soprano curves in fractalized spirals one minute and soars in heavenside choirs the next. Meanwhile, Gari Hegedus is a stringed wonder, playing saz, baglama, oud, violin, and just about anything else from the Asian diaspora you can pluck or bow. It's been seven years since Stellamara's debut album, Star of the Sea. But despite some personnel changes, including the departure of Jeffrey Stott (who went on to found Lumin), they manage to continue their exotic fusion, like a global gypsy troupe lost in time."

- John Diliberto

Tracklist

Credits

SZERELEM
Lyrics and vocal melody: traditional Hungarian
Music and arrangement: Sonja Drakulich and Gar Hegedus
Sonja Drakulich voice, hammered dulcimer, sound design
Gari Hegedus mandocello
Susu Pampanin darbuka, riga, dahola
Tobias Roberson tapan, daff
Jaime Paulos sound design, keyboards

RESULINA
Music and arrangement: Sonja Drakulich and Gari Hegedus
Sonja Drakulich voice, hammered dulcimer, keyboards
Gari, Hegedus ond, violin, viola
-Susu Pampanin darbuka, dahola
-Tobias Roberson tapan, riga
Christopher K keyboards

ZABLEIALO MI AGANCE
Lyrics and vocal melody: traditional Bulgarian
Music and arrangement: Sonja Drakulich and
Gari Hegedus
Gari Hegedus viola
Jaime Paulos sound design, keyboards

BARAKA
*Music: Susu Pampanin, Sonja Drakulich and Gart Hegedus
Arrangement: Sonja Drakulich
Sonja Drakulich voice, lups; sound design, keyboards
Susu Pampanin darbuka, dahola, cajon, carcabas, bendir bongos, claps
Jaime Paulos sound design, keyboards
Gari Hegedus, cumbus, claps

NIDA
Music: Gari Hegedus
Arrangement: Gari Hegedus and Sonia Drakulich
Portuguese lyrics: Sonja Drakulich
Sonja Drakulich voice, framc drum, sound design, keyboards
Gari Hegedus oud, viola
Beth Bahia Cohen yayh tanbur, viola, violin
Tobias Roberson frame drum
Jaime Paulos sound design, keyboards

KÜRDi TAKSiM
Oud Improvisation Gar Hegedus

SEVEN VALLEYS
*Music and artangement: Sonja Drakulich and Gari Hegedus
Lyrics: Sa'di
Sonja Drakulich voice
Gari Hegedus divan saz, baglama, cura
Tobias Roberson daff

FIRTINA
*Music and arrangement: Gan Hegedus
Gari Hegedus divan saz, baglama, cura
Tobias Roberson daff

MALIKS
Music and Portuguese lyrics: Gari Hegedus
Arrangement: Gar Hegedus and Sonja Drakulich
Gari Hegedus sarod, oud, tambura
Sonja Drakulich voice
Tobias Roberson frame drum

KVRIE ELEISON
Music and arrangement: Sonja Drakulich
Partial melody based on the 13th Century
Gradual of Eleanor of Brittany
Sonja Drakulich voice, frame drum, keyboards
Tim Rayborn voice

PERSEPHONE
Music: Gari Hegedus
Arrangement: Gari Hegedus and Sonja Drakulich
-Gari Hegedus oud, violin, viola
Beth Bahia Cohen yayli tanbur, violin, viola
Sonja Drakulich sound design.
Jaime Paulos sound design, keyboards

STRUMICA
Music and arrangement: Sonja Drakulich
Lyrics and partial melody: traditional
Bulgarian
Sonja Drakulich voice, frame drum
Gari Hegedus divan sax, baglama, cura
Paddy League Constantinople lyra
Tobias Roberson tapan, riga, frame drum
Christopher K drum

Produced by Sonja Drakulich
Recorded by Sonja Drakulich at Akashic Music Studios
Seven Valleys and Kürdi Taksim recorded by Winter at El Mundo Bueno Studios
Mixed by Christopher K at El Mundo Bueno Studios, San Francisco, CA
Additional mixing by Winter and Sonja Drakulich
Mastered by Stephen Marsh at Threshold Sound and Vision, Santa Monica, CA

2-HOS-11417