This is music that promises to blend old memories and new sparks. The Boriana Dimitrova Quartett performs melodies drawn from a rich East European custom that for years was hidden behind the Iron Curtain. Named for the saxophonist and flautist, Boriana, who hails from Bulgaria, the quartet, now based in Germany, zigzags its way through the sounds of Bulgaria's folk music and lilting bagpipes to integrate Western jazz with Eastern harmonies.
Their pieces, therefore, are a dramatic contrast of saxophone purrs and punched riffs with the guitar, bass and drums waltzing through polymorphous tones and jazz swing.
The music is a deeply personal journey, unsentimental in tone and full of up tempo pieces that spur the spirit on.
Schooled in the classical piano and the oboe, Boriana found her calling in jazz and went on to graduate as the first female saxophonist in her home country in 1998.
Jakob Dreyer is one of the most prominent bassists in Hamburg and has been part of the German State Youth Jazz Orchestra, working with several international jazz musicians.
Lars Dahlke's first instrument was the trumpet before he became besotted with the electric guitar at 14. He divides his time performing with several jazz bands and working on film scores.
Drummer Niels-Henrik Heinsohn has been playing since the age of 12 and is a musician from the Bremen University of Arts and the Hamburg University of Music and Performing Arts.
At The Hindu Friday Review Music Fest, the quartet will perform pieces from their album ‘Balkan Blues'.
Boriana's saxophone promises to deliver bursts of agility, while Jakob's bass will hover between rumbling twangs, bluesy moans and gypsy rock.
Lars will bring it up with his soulful guitaring and Niels with his crisp, impactful drumming.
The quartet promises music inspired by its rich multi-cultural moorings.
The Boriana Dimitrova Quartett is brought to India in association with the Unwind Center and Hamburg-Ministry of Culture.
