Junun

Submitted by nonesuch on
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Release Date
DescriptionExcerpt

Junun—an album from composer/musician Shye Ben Tzur, guitarist Jonny Greenwood, and the Rajasthan Express, a group of Indian musicians—was recorded in a makeshift studio inside the 15th-century Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, India, with Radiohead's producer Nigel Godrich. The album comprises Ben Tzur’s compositions, which feature devotional Sufi qawwal musicians who sing in Urdu as well as in his native Hebrew. "One of the most inspired releases of the year," says the Times of London. "Intriguing, sinuous, and essential listening."

Description

Nonesuch Records releases Junun—an album from composer/musician Shye Ben Tzur, guitarist Jonny Greenwood, and the Rajasthan Express, a group of Indian musicians—on November 20, 2015. Recorded earlier this year in a makeshift studio inside the 15th-century Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, India, the album was made with Radiohead's producer Nigel Godrich, who worked with the ensemble to create this two LP/CD album. The album comprises Ben Tzur’s compositions, which feature devotional Sufi qawwal musicians who sing in Urdu as well as in his native Hebrew. Junun is an alternate spelling of "junoon," which means "mania," or "the madness of love."

The filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, a friend and frequent collaborator of Greenwood, came along to document the recording sessions as well as daily life and the close camaraderie of artistic collaboration. Anderson's resulting impressionistic film, also entitled Junun, debuted at the New York Film Festival on October 8 and streamed exclusively on MUBI from October 9 through November 7. The film is available on iTunes.

Greenwood made a guest appearance last year during Ben Tzur's London concert, where they previewed some of the music of Junun, and this summer, the two were joined by the qawwali party for two performances at the Jerusalem Sacred Music Festival. Further concerts are being planned for the future, as are additional screenings of Anderson's film.

Shye Ben Tzur is an Israeli composer/producer/poet and performer who lives in India and Israel. He composes qawwalis—instrumental and devotional music—in Hebrew, Urdu, and Hindi. A concert by Zakir Hussain and Hariprasad Chaurasia that Ben Tzur attended as a young man was life-changing. "It touched my heart so deeply," he says. "It was at the time the deepest musical experience I had gone through. It moved me so that I could do nothing but go find out what it is. I feel I'm still in that spot. I don't think I have achieved it. Indian music is so vast and so deep and the more I learn different things about it, I realize how ignorant I was. It just doesn't stop."

"When I was in the Negev desert in southern Israel a couple of years ago, I heard a band playing a song using an Arabic violin called a rehab," Greenwood told London's Evening Standard. "It was a strange mix of Arabic and traditional Indian music, one that I'd never come across before," He continued, "The best song, I found out, was written by Shye Ben Tzur, an Israeli musician who had been living in India until this year. I set out to discover more about him … I'm always a little wary of rock bands half-heartedly dabbling in world music—itself a slightly greasy term—but there are exceptions. Damon Albarn is one: his work with musicians in Mali is something he's clearly fully committed to. And I think Shye Ben Tzur is another."

Widely known as the guitarist for Radiohead, Jonny Greenwood also is a highly respected composer. In addition to his soundtracks to Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice, There Will Be Blood, and The Master, Nonesuch also released his score for Norwegian Wood and his collaboration with Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki.

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
All music composed by Shye Ben Tzur
Arranged by Shye Ben Tzur & Jonny Greenwood
Produced by Jonny Greenwood
Recorded, mixed and engineered by Nigel Godrich
Recording engineer: Sam Petts-Davies
Mastered by Robert C. Ludwig
Original project conceived by Sharona Katan
Managed by Brian Message & Jake Leslau for ATC Management

Poetry by Shy Ben Tzur except "Junun (Madness of Love)" by Hazrat Nawab Khadim Hasan Gudri Shah Baba III; "Chala Vahi Des (Let’s Go to That Land)" by Meera Bai; "Kalandar (Ascetic)," Julus (Procession)" Traditional Sufi

Art directors: Shin Katan & Ian Patrick
Cover photos & art by Shin Katan
Design & booklet photography by Ian Patrick
Project wallah: Arne Warmington
Production manager: Pippa Robinson
Production assistance in Jodhpur: Sanjay Badnore

Special thanks to Paul Thomas Anderson

Patron of the Project: His Highness Maharaja Gaj Singh II of Marwar, Jodhpur

Nonesuch Selection Number

552641

FormatRestrictions

This album is available from Nonesuch Records for the world outside of Israel.

ns_album_releasedate
Album Status
Artist Name
Shye Ben Tzur
Jonny Greenwood
The Rajasthan Express
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Shye Ben Tzur, vocal, guitar, flute
Jonny Greenwood, guitar, bass guitar, drum machine & computers, ondes martenot, keyboard
Aamir Bhiyani, lead trumpet
Hazmat, tuba
Ajaj Damami, trombone
Sabir Damami, tuba
Soheb Bhiyani, trumpet
Bhanwaru Khan, tuba
Zaki Ali Qawwal, Qawwali vocal
Zakir Ali Qawwal, Qawwali vocal, harmonium
Gufran Ali, Shazib Ali, Qawwali chorus
Ehtisham Khan Ajmeri, Qawwali chorus, dholak
Chugge Khan, percussion (khartal, bhapang, manjeera)
Nihal Khan, dholak
Nathu Lal Solanki, Narsi Lal Solanki, nagara
Asin Khan, sarangi on "Hu"; vocal on "Ahuvi"
Dara Khan, kamaicha on "Hu" & "Ahuvi"
Afshana Khan, vocal on "Chala Vahi Des"
Razia Sultan, vocal on "Chala Vahi Des," "Allah Elohim"

Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
2LP+MP3
UPC
075597948394
Label
2CD+MP3
UPC
075597948387
Label
FLAC
Price
13.00
UPC
075597948400
Label
MP3
Price
12.00
UPC
075597947212
  • 552641

Track Listing

News & Reviews

  • Jonny Greenwood, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score for Jane Campion's film The Power of the Dog earlier today, was the guest on NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross yesterday to discuss his work as a film composer—including his four Nonesuch soundtracks for Paul Thomas Anderson's films There Will Be Blood, The Master, Inherent Vice, and Phantom Thread—his album with composer Krzysztof Penderecki, and Radiohead. "Thank you for that music," Gross says of his Phantom Thread score. "I really love it." You can hear their conversation here.

  • Jonny Greenwood is on the podcast Penderecki in Memoriam to talk with host Max Horowitz about his compositional work and his connection to that of the late Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki, with whom Greenwood released an album on Nonesuch in 2012. "What I responded to is the rule-breaking, partly," Greenwood says of Penderecki's music. "It was seeing that just because music is written on paper, it doesn't necessarily have to fit within the confines of written limitations. And suddenly you realize, anything is possible." You can hear the conversation here.

Buy Now

  • About This Album

    Nonesuch Records releases Junun—an album from composer/musician Shye Ben Tzur, guitarist Jonny Greenwood, and the Rajasthan Express, a group of Indian musicians—on November 20, 2015. Recorded earlier this year in a makeshift studio inside the 15th-century Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, India, the album was made with Radiohead's producer Nigel Godrich, who worked with the ensemble to create this two LP/CD album. The album comprises Ben Tzur’s compositions, which feature devotional Sufi qawwal musicians who sing in Urdu as well as in his native Hebrew. Junun is an alternate spelling of "junoon," which means "mania," or "the madness of love."

    The filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, a friend and frequent collaborator of Greenwood, came along to document the recording sessions as well as daily life and the close camaraderie of artistic collaboration. Anderson's resulting impressionistic film, also entitled Junun, debuted at the New York Film Festival on October 8 and streamed exclusively on MUBI from October 9 through November 7. The film is available on iTunes.

    Greenwood made a guest appearance last year during Ben Tzur's London concert, where they previewed some of the music of Junun, and this summer, the two were joined by the qawwali party for two performances at the Jerusalem Sacred Music Festival. Further concerts are being planned for the future, as are additional screenings of Anderson's film.

    Shye Ben Tzur is an Israeli composer/producer/poet and performer who lives in India and Israel. He composes qawwalis—instrumental and devotional music—in Hebrew, Urdu, and Hindi. A concert by Zakir Hussain and Hariprasad Chaurasia that Ben Tzur attended as a young man was life-changing. "It touched my heart so deeply," he says. "It was at the time the deepest musical experience I had gone through. It moved me so that I could do nothing but go find out what it is. I feel I'm still in that spot. I don't think I have achieved it. Indian music is so vast and so deep and the more I learn different things about it, I realize how ignorant I was. It just doesn't stop."

    "When I was in the Negev desert in southern Israel a couple of years ago, I heard a band playing a song using an Arabic violin called a rehab," Greenwood told London's Evening Standard. "It was a strange mix of Arabic and traditional Indian music, one that I'd never come across before," He continued, "The best song, I found out, was written by Shye Ben Tzur, an Israeli musician who had been living in India until this year. I set out to discover more about him … I'm always a little wary of rock bands half-heartedly dabbling in world music—itself a slightly greasy term—but there are exceptions. Damon Albarn is one: his work with musicians in Mali is something he's clearly fully committed to. And I think Shye Ben Tzur is another."

    Widely known as the guitarist for Radiohead, Jonny Greenwood also is a highly respected composer. In addition to his soundtracks to Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice, There Will Be Blood, and The Master, Nonesuch also released his score for Norwegian Wood and his collaboration with Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki.

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Shye Ben Tzur, vocal, guitar, flute
    Jonny Greenwood, guitar, bass guitar, drum machine & computers, ondes martenot, keyboard
    Aamir Bhiyani, lead trumpet
    Hazmat, tuba
    Ajaj Damami, trombone
    Sabir Damami, tuba
    Soheb Bhiyani, trumpet
    Bhanwaru Khan, tuba
    Zaki Ali Qawwal, Qawwali vocal
    Zakir Ali Qawwal, Qawwali vocal, harmonium
    Gufran Ali, Shazib Ali, Qawwali chorus
    Ehtisham Khan Ajmeri, Qawwali chorus, dholak
    Chugge Khan, percussion (khartal, bhapang, manjeera)
    Nihal Khan, dholak
    Nathu Lal Solanki, Narsi Lal Solanki, nagara
    Asin Khan, sarangi on "Hu"; vocal on "Ahuvi"
    Dara Khan, kamaicha on "Hu" & "Ahuvi"
    Afshana Khan, vocal on "Chala Vahi Des"
    Razia Sultan, vocal on "Chala Vahi Des," "Allah Elohim"

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    All music composed by Shye Ben Tzur
    Arranged by Shye Ben Tzur & Jonny Greenwood
    Produced by Jonny Greenwood
    Recorded, mixed and engineered by Nigel Godrich
    Recording engineer: Sam Petts-Davies
    Mastered by Robert C. Ludwig
    Original project conceived by Sharona Katan
    Managed by Brian Message & Jake Leslau for ATC Management

    Poetry by Shy Ben Tzur except "Junun (Madness of Love)" by Hazrat Nawab Khadim Hasan Gudri Shah Baba III; "Chala Vahi Des (Let’s Go to That Land)" by Meera Bai; "Kalandar (Ascetic)," Julus (Procession)" Traditional Sufi

    Art directors: Shin Katan & Ian Patrick
    Cover photos & art by Shin Katan
    Design & booklet photography by Ian Patrick
    Project wallah: Arne Warmington
    Production manager: Pippa Robinson
    Production assistance in Jodhpur: Sanjay Badnore

    Special thanks to Paul Thomas Anderson

    Patron of the Project: His Highness Maharaja Gaj Singh II of Marwar, Jodhpur

  • Format Availability

    This album is available from Nonesuch Records for the world outside of Israel.