Yungchen Lhamo
with His Holiness the Dalai Lama
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Yungchen Lhamo, "The Voice of Tibet,"
Performs at Ithaca's State Theatre
Friday, October 5, 2007
prior to the Dalai Lama's visit
Tibetan-born singer Yhungchen Lhamo will be in concert at Ithaca's historic State Theatre at 7:30 pm Fri. Oct. 5 to present traditional songs of Tibet as well as participate in a musical collaboration with Richie Stearns (of The Horse Flies and other nationally known bands) and renowned improvisational cellist, Hank Roberts. |
Tickets are available starting August 6, 2007 at the State Theatre box office, Ithaca, NY, and online at www.stateofithaca.com (see below for more details).
Since fleeing Tibet on foot in 1989, Yungchen Lhamo has emerged as the leading Tibetan vocalist on the world stage. From the quays of Sydney, Australia to the spotlight of Carnegie Hall, her a cappella performances have enchanted audiences in more than 70 countries. Her "pristine, gliding vocal lines" (New York Times) evoke worlds both far away and deep within. She's collaborated with Natalie Merchant, Bill T. Jones, Peter Gabriel, Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed, and Sarah McLachlan; Newsweek calls her the "angel-voiced Tibetan singer." (Her name, given by a Tibetan lama when she was a baby, translates to "goddess of melody and song.")
Born in a labor camp in Chinese-occupied Tibet, Yungchen began working in a carpet-weaving factory at the age of five. Tibetan singing was one of many customs banned by the Cultural Revolution, which began violently in Tibet in 1959. It was in this inhospitable setting that her grandmother taught Yungchen the devotional singing she has shared with audiences around the world.
At the age of 19, at the end of a dangerous 1,000-mile escape across the Himalayas, Yungchen arrived in India, where she visited numerous Tibetan refugee camps and had the opportunity to meet the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He encouraged her to go and share with western people the richness of Tibetan culture through the beauty of her voice. |
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"When I left Tibet, I lost everything," Yungchen recalls. "The one thing I didn't lose was my voice. And this I carried with me to the West."
The critics say...
"Yungchen's latest CD, AMA (Real World Records) has been named by a number of world music critics as one of the best world music recordings of 2006 (including Los Angeles-based KPFK-FM, one of the leading world music stations.) 'This exiled Tibetan's exquisite voice finds its best setting to date, blending ethereal qualities with earthier tones made by strings, flutes, kora and more. Meditative, but also joyous and at times urgent--a voice with an almost irresistibly calming sound and texture. She explores much more than tranquility on this album, however, with performances that also reflect the rough-hewn mountain grandeur of her native country, as well as a gripping duet with Annie Lennox on 'Fade Away.' The most remarkable track may be '9/11,' a stirring, deeply felt response to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, recorded spontaneously in a New York studio."--L.A. Times
"...AMA is an album of surprises, an album that's been a long time coming, but worth the wait...so perfectly free of cliches and powered by imagination that it transcends genre. It simply is--and in this case that statement is all you need. Yungchen Lhamo has made a wonderful album."--Billboard
"Blessed with one of the most clear, exquisite voices to be found anywhere in the world, Yungchen Lhamo is a refugee from Tibet, who escaped across the Himalayas to India, where she first started singing, and who now lives in New York. Inevitably, her delicate songs reflect her experiences. There are cool, drifting atmospheric passages that would work well as a film soundtrack, matched against gently sturdy dance songs that reflect Tibetan folk styles."--The Guardian
"...Tibet's most important artist...the fact that she lives in exile actually enhances her status as her homeland's musical ambassador. She has come to embody the sound of Tibet for many in the Western world."--Dirty Linen
A Yungchen Lhamo concert is a spiritual as well as a musical experience, with much of her repertoire from Tibetan chant, often with audience participation. The performance in Ithaca on Friday, October 5th will feature her solo as well as in musical collaboration with two nationally-recognized American musicians who make their homes here in Ithaca: the Horse Flies' Richie Stearns (www.richiestearns.com) and cellist Hank Roberts (www.hankroberts.com). The concert will feature both tradition-based and original work.
This concert is a co-production of Rootabaga Boogie Productions and the State Theatre.
Advance tickets are available for $19.50 at
The Clinton House Ticketcenter
105 West State Street
Ithaca, NY 14850
Tel: (607) 27-STATE (277-8283)
www.stateofithaca.com
For more info on Yungchen visit www.yungchenlhamo.com
For other questions on the Oct. 5 Ithaca performance, please contact
Tracey Craig
Rootabaga Boogie Productions
rootabagaboogie@lightlink.com
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Recordings by Yungchen Lhamo . . .
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