Judith Wright Centre, BEMAC and Kultour present
ZULYA AND THE CHILDREN OF THE UNDERGROUND
“..she is one of the most important contributors to the overall pattern of a contemporary Australian music in
this society.” Felix Hayman, ABC Classic FM
ARIA Award winning band Zulya and the Children of the Underground, who are embarking on a national tour to launch their new album, Tales of Subliming, will perform at the Judith Wright Centre on Sunday 11 April 2010.
Zulya and the Children of the Underground won an ARIA Award for Best World Music Album for their last recording,3 Nights, which also spent four months in the Top 10 of the European world music charts.
Well-known in Brisbane for her guest performances with Doch Gypsy Orchestra, Women in Voice and her last soldout concert at Judith Wright Centre in 2007, Zulya says her new music was inspired by the fairytales of her childhood.
“Tales of Subliming is a collection of vignettes based on fairytales; each song brings to life the journey of a female character including Gerda from Snow Queen, the Snow Maiden and Baba Yaga (the Russian witch),” Zulya said.
“It was exciting to explore these characters through song as there is a lot more going on in fairytales than we can see at first glance; fairytales are about our journeys to achieve individuality in a symbolic form,” she said.
“Some say each of us identifies with our own fairy story or with a character from one. Because of this I am confident that the audience will find the music evocative, fascinating, thought-provoking and uplifting,” she said.
Zulya and the Children of the Underground combines the melancholy, beauty and drama of Zulya’s song writing and the extraordinary musicianship of her collaborators.
Described by critics as a blend of Russian and Tatar ethnic music and contemporary European jazz, Zulya’s songwriting traverses country, cumbia, klezmer, jazz, classical, Russian folk, Mexican and circus music styles.
For Tales of Subliming the distinctive trumpet of new band member Eamon McNelis (Flap!, Vada) assumes the role of primary solo instrument, shifting the emphasis away from the mostly Russian sound of the band’s two earlier releases.
Contrary to Zulya’s previous albums, which have been primarily written in Russian, Tales of Subliming features seven songs written in English.
Growing up in Tatarstan, Russia, in a musical family, Zulya was immersed in a culture of family gatherings with lots of song around the table and started performing at age nine.
Since moving to Australia in 1991, Zulya has performed at festivals and venues across the country including Sydney Opera House, WOMADELAIDE and Woodford Folk Festival, among others.Zulya was awarded Female Artist of the Year by the 2001 Australian World Music Awards and won Best Live World
Music Artist by the 2002 Australian Live Music Awards.
Embarking on a national tour to launch their new album, Tales of Subliming, Zulya and the Children of the Underground will perform for one-night-only at the Judith Wright Centre on Sunday 11 April 2010.
