Introducing Nour Ensemble

In my last trip to Tehran I went to my favorite store "Beethoven" which is now in mirdamad Ave. and bought couple of CDs. Here I want to tell a little about one of them "Alba" from Nour Ensemble.
"Nour Ensemble was founded in 2000 practically for the performance of the piece entitled "Alba",a new experience in combining Persian and European music." The music is a combination of Gregorian music, "Cantigas de Santa Maria"( written during reign of Alfonso X el Sabio -1221,1284-, who was known for fostering interaction between Christian, Muslim and Jewish intellectuals), The "Llibre Vernell de Montserrati"(Red Book of Montserrat, another source of spanish religious songs, written at the end of 14th century and a mixture of popular and mystic inspirations) and Persian and Kurdish Music! (The persian poems are from Baba Taher, Rumi and Hafez and the Kurdish from Nali, Mowlavi Kurd, Vafaie ghassem Moayedzadeh and folklore texts.).
I have always loved Gregorian music( though I don't understand what they say, I just appreciate their voice as a musical instrument)and kurdish music. To me what they did is not only very meaningfull , but is also very brave!
It's interesting to know that they recorded the whole work in Ardeshir Babakan's Castle,which is 1800 year old. "What is interesting about the archtiecture is that it can neither be categorized as a Parthian nor a Sassanid style. The core of Nour Ensemble music belongs to the eastern and western traditions of the middle ages. Realizing those textures in today's world, pictures Nour as an edifice standing out among its surrounding architecture."
It is made up of nine tracks:(Alleluia, Santa Maria Amar, Villancio,Alba, Cunctissimus Concantes,Uterus, Lullaby Miragres Fremosos, Novus annus or ستایش، مریم مقدس، پایکوبی، سحر،سماع، تولد، لالایی، معجزه زیبا و فصل نو)
I really liked the music. To finish this introduction I'll quote what Hossein Alizadeh wrote after hearing this work:
!امروز نور راشنیدم
پس می توان
.سایه ها و رنگ ها را هم شنید
می توان حتی عطر گلها، شکوه درختان
.و طعم تک تک میوه ها را هم شنید
،می توان چهره، نگاه، عشق انسانها را شنید
.می توان صلح را دید
،هرکس با صدای خود چیزی را ترسیم می کند
که گویی
،آنرا قبل از تولد شنیده است
.همه همصدا می شوند، هرکس با زبان خود
.مقصد یکی است
.دنیا کوچک است و پرواز پرندگان بزرگ
تو کیستی؟ از کدام دیاری؟
.من صدای نورم، پرده یی از آرزوهای دیرین
!کاشتم عشق است به تو. تو هم بکار
،منهم کاشته م با تو
در زمین، در زمین تو
،نیایش
.و ستایش
.نه از من، نه از تو
.از او....
(I listened to Nour today,Therefore it's possible to listen to shadows and colors as well, And to listen to the splendor of the trees,and to savor of each and every fruit. You can listen to faces,looks and human love, You can see peace. Man inscribes something with his voice, as if, He had heard it before coming to this world, All voices become one, each in his own language, All reach to one. Small is the world. Yet so grand is the bird's soar. Who are you?Where do you come from? "Iam the sound of light, an act of old dreams.I sow love for you. You sow too!" So I have sown with you, In my land, in yours, Prayer and Praise, Not of me, Not of you,...of Him.)
-Translations are not from me