Uzbekistan: Music of Khorezm

Khorezm, a medieval kingdom located in the heart of Central Asia, is now a culturally autonomous region in the northwest of Uzbekistan. Khorezmians are known for their distinctive traditions of language and oral literature, festivity and celebration, and music and dance. Uzbekistan: Music of Khorezm, recorded between 1991 and 1994, explores the region’s traditional sound world through five distinct musical traditions: oral epic, music by and for women, spiritual songs, classical music, and popular music. The expressive cantillations of epic tales, the rigorous and virtuosic performances of maqam suites, and the spiritual song by a professional mourner (guyanda)—whose intense voice reaches a high point of culmination (awj)—all attest the legacy of the venerable cultural tradition of Khorezm.

Theodore Levin, the compiler of this album, also produced a number of Siberian and Central Asian recordings in the Smithsonian Folkways catalog, including the GRAMMY-nominated Music of Central Asia series.

Track Listing

101	Excerpt from Dastan Bazirgan	Qalandar Baxshi, Nizamaddin Ruzmetov, Qudrat Rahimov, Davran Masharipov	05:49
102	Yar-yar	Nazira Baïjanova	04:57
103	Geldim size mehman bölib - Alma pishgende geling	Nazira Baijanova, Ulibibi Baijanova	06:37
104	Bir Allaim	Nazira Baijanova, Matrasul Matyakubov, San'at Zaripov	05:30
105	Aqlimni ölib - Sudur janim su böldi	Shirin Jumaniazova, Dilbar Qalandarova	06:05
106	Chapandaz-i suvara - Sawt-i suvara	Farhad Davlatov, Qazibay Rozmatov	11:44
107	Muqaddima-i segah	Azad Ibragimov, Ulugbek Kurbanbaev, Maxsud Yeshchanov	06:23
108	Hafif-i Segah	Matrasul Matyakubov, Abad Latipov	04:48
109	Qaradali	Shuxrat Razakov	02:44
110	Dayra rhythms	Saidnazar Otajanov	01:37
111	Araziban	Ensemble Araziban	09:01