KKV Crossing Borders

10/12/2023

Mahsa Vahdat performed today at the ceremony for 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi at Oslo town hall. Together with the pianist Tord Gustavsen she performed the poems "Colored night" by Forough Farrokhzad and "Twinklings of Hope" by Mohammad Ibrahim Jafari. Here is Mahsa's reflection about her participation👇

06/10/2023

https://orcd.co/od4pvk7
Congratulations to all freedom fighting women in Iran and all the Iranians who fight for freedom in their homeland from their places around the world! 🎉👏💥⭐️The Nobel Peace Prize to Narges Mohammadi is a prize also to you! The fight will succeed! All people in the world must stand together with you, and one day the great cultural nation of Iran will get its freedom. KKV supports you wholeheartedly in your fight. The most recent example of our contributions is «Braids of Innocence» with Mahsa Vahdat II and SKRUK. It contains songs that are very relevant for the first revolution led by women, the fight for freedom now going on.👇

Choose your preferred music service

16/09/2023

This video is made to a song from the album “Braids of Innocence” with Mahsa Vahdat and SKRUK. It is supported by the Art Council Norway and directed by Soheil Parsa.

We dedicate this song to the children of tomorrow for whom the daughters of today have lit thousands stars in their dark homeland and to the daughters of today, who meet the children of tomorrow with their braids of hope and joy.

Here is Mahsa’s words about the background of the text:

I was 11 years old.
It was a few years after the revolution in Iran.
Together with my mother I went to visit my uncle who was imprisoned for political activism. The short meeting took place in a room where several other political prisoners were present behind a glass wall. In the morning my mother had braided my hair in the same beautiful way that was done for important celebrations, and she wanted to show my braids to my uncle.
The brave act of lifting my veil took less than half a minute.
As a twinkling of freedom and resistance, the prisoners in the room could watch my unveiled braids.
The uncle and his fellow prisoners exclaimed that the sight of innocence and joy had made their day.

This video is made to a song from the album “Braids of Innocence” with Mahsa Vahdat and SKRUK. It is supported by the Art Council Norway and directed by Sohe...

05/09/2023

Marjan Vahdat gave a great concert tonight at Oslo Cathedral together with Tord Gustavsen (piano), Ertan Tekin (duduk) and Rune Arnesen (drums) 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼I was a part of Oslo International Church Music Festival. September 20 she permorms at Drammen Sacred Music Festival⭐️

12/05/2023

Our friends Daughters of Jerusalem Banat Alquds have made a video commemorating the Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh who was killed by Israeli troops during a raid in the occupied West Bank one year ago. The music is composed by Suhail Khoury who also is the conductor of the group. The lyrics are by Fida Koutoub.

بنات القدس - تبقى شيرين | الحان: سهيل خوري كلمات: فداء القطب

13/04/2023

KKV wants to share the news about the newly announced Rim Banna Award جائزة ريما بنا.

We use the opportunity to commemorate her passing 5 years ago. She is still a big inspiration for countless of people in Palestine and the Middle East, and also in other parts of the world.
We are proud of the collaboration we had during 15 years, and through 6 important solo albums plus a series of concerts.

The award aims to encourage the production of new songs that simulate the Palestinian cause or global humanitarian issues, in order to influence Arab and international public opinion and invite it to pay attention to the just cause in Palestine and issues of political and social justice around the w...

20/03/2023

As we now pass Nowrouz, the Persian new year, KKV invites everybody to let the beautiful music of Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat fill their spaces and hearts, and with it commemorate all the young people in Iran who since September last year have sacrificed their lives during the ongoing protests against the oppression of the Iranian people. You may listen to the playlist “Sorrowful Spring” which is put together by Mahsa Vahdat:

03/03/2023

Soft City in the magazine Rock And Blues International

28/02/2023

A gret review of the album Braids of innocence by Mahsa Vahdat, SKRUK and Ellen Bødtker - Soloharpist from Lira Musikmagasin
"Magic and majestic from one of our time’s most beautiful female voices"
“With the choir dynamics and exchanges between the collective and the soloist is created”
Hør albumet her: https://orcd.co/od4pvk7

https://www.lira.se/skivrecension/braids-of-innocence/

Choose your preferred music service

27/02/2023

This video is from the US release of "Braids of innocence" with Mahsa Vahdat, Atabak Elyasi, the leader of SKRUK and Erik Hillestad 📀📀 Watch the video from New York and San Francisco/Berkeley here:

08/02/2023

Mahsa Vahdat listening party in Berkeley 🙌

02/02/2023

We are nr.9 at the Transglobal World Music Chart

25/01/2023

Intervju med Deutschlandfunk Kultur om Mahsa Vahdat & SKRUK
🙌📀

24/01/2023

Mahsa Vahdat presented her new album “Braids of Innocence” at a launch party held late last week at the former Socialist Party Hall in San Francisco’s Mission District.

“I hope my album gives strength to many people, as we are now in a very important phase of history. We just hope that soon we can have this concert in Iran.”

Mahsa Vadat, an Iranian artist, who lives in exile in Berkeley, presented her new album “Braids of Innocence” at a launch party held late last week at the Mahsa Vahdat presents her new album 'Braids of Innocence.'

13/01/2023

"Vocal beauty to listen to breathlessly." Review 📀🙌 "Braids of innocence" with Mahsa Vahdat SKRUK & Ellen Bødtker - Soloharpist

MixedWorldMusic.com

11/01/2023

Great review from Glitterhouse (GE)

The fabulous Iranian singer Mahsa Vahdat in a very, very special project with the veteran Norwegian choir SKRUK , who has always been stylistically open-minded. Frequently, the choir and Vahdat's wonderful voice are on an equal footing, sometimes Vahdat takes the lead, but at least in parts the choir too.

Vahdat works of course under Iranian influence, the choir sometimes quite daring to a little experimental, (and I even had to think about Arvo Pärt once or twice). The instrumental accompaniment consists solely of a mostly (not entirely) restrained harp. A very special but great recommendation!

06/01/2023

We are at the list of WOMEX Top 20 labels of the year

Since our first WOMEX Top Label Award in 2006, the record label business has gone through many transformations, some exciting and some undesirable. The market has never been more challenging as it stands today, and to tackle this we encourage inclusiveness. Since our 25th Anniversary in 2019, we wis...

03/01/2023

We hebben een aantal vreemde jaren achter de rug, maar 2022 was er eindelijk eens één zonder...

17/12/2022

Review of Braids of Innocence in the german magazine «Kultkomplott»

“….A manifesto of grandeur and pride, it's a music of struggle, grace, beauty and longing and hope…. the songs impress with the onomatopoeic soundscapes of the Norwegian choir Skruk. Their texts come close to atmospheric sound paintings that seem to create imaginary, sacred spaces.

Mahsa Vahdat SKRUK Ellen Bødtker - Soloharpist

Kultur- und Musikportal mit Veranstaltungskalender für München und Umgebung

13/12/2022

Listen to the sequence about "Braids of innocence" at the Dutch radio show 'De Nacht: Wereld' on the Concertzender Nederland with Benno Wormgoor (from: 3:35:00)

Mahsa Vahdat SKRUK Ellen Bødtker - Soloharpist

Een hele nacht wereldmuziek gemaakt en verzameld door Benno Wormgoor.

09/12/2022

The important Italian Music magazine Blogfoolk just wrote about Braids of innocence

Mahsa Vahdat & Skruk – Braids of innocence (KKV Kirkelig Kulturverksted , 2022)

06/12/2022

Listen to the podcast in Hessischer Rundfunk for German speakers, about Braids of innocence, from Mahsa Vahdat SKRUKEllen Bødtker - Soloharpist

Mahsa Vahdat ist aus Teheran/Iran und lebt heute in Norwegen. Als sie dort diesen Sommer an einem neuen Album mit dem Chor SKRUK arbeitete, schlug sie als Titel "Braids of innocence" - Zöpfe der Unschuld vor, nicht ahnend, was dieser Titel dann bei der Veröffentlichung für eine Brisanz haben wür...

02/12/2022

The new album "Braids of innocence" from Mahsa Vahdat, SKRUK and Ellen Bødtker - Soloharpist is released!

"The album that became part of the Iranian women’s struggle for freedom"

Check it out here:

Choose your preferred music service

28/09/2022

Women – Life – Freedom
KKV has worked for two decades with the Iranian artists Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat, and also with other Iranian singers and musicians.

All of the projects this collaboration has brought have had two aims: To support Iranian women in their struggle for the right to express themselves freely, and to bring the great Iranian music and poetry to the world.

In these days after the murder on Mahsa Amini by the Moral police in Tehran, we see how both women and men are fighting in a fearless, brave and impressing way to make a change in their country, and we stay strongly by them in this fight.

We hope all the people in the world will continue to show their support.

23/08/2022

"At the foundation of Our Garden Is Alone lies a rift between body and soul."

At the foundation of Our Garden Is Alone lies a rift between body and soul. Though Marjan Vahdat lives in California her heart is in her native Iran: Whenever one part of her is in daylight the oth…

09/08/2022

Marjan Vahdat get amazing reviews from all over the world for her album "Our Garden is Alone"📀👏

At the foundation of Our Garden Is Alone lies a rift between body and soul. Though Marjan Vahdat lives in California her heart is in her native Iran: Whenever one part of her is in daylight the oth…

29/06/2022

Listen to the Spanish Radio rtve's great presentation of one of KKV's great releases: I am Eve from 2008 with Mahsa Vahdat and Marjan Vahdat. Their program Rumbo al Este have through the years brought many poetic reviews of albums made by these two Iranian sisters👇

https://www.rtve.es/play/audios/rumbo-al-este/yo-soy-eva-atabak-elyasi-mahsa-marjan-vahdat-22-06-22/6631915/?fbclid=IwAR37epMoBgUK83BOnCWd3HDAHDMI7ufol7xCVJtiOcpWw26PqXfku_Pb2gQ

Yo soy Eva. ¿Quién puede impedirle a Eva que cante? ¿Quién puede impedirle al agua que corra o al viento que sople? Desde la primera mujer de la creación, las voces de las mujeres se han escuchado dondequiera que la humanidad se asentara. Cantaban canciones de amor y alegría, dolor y consuelo....

29/06/2022

KKV is happy to share that Tania Saleh performs today at Pre-Summit Ministerial Segment I in Paris - arranged by Unesco. Her performance of 3 songs will happen at 13.26 Paris time👇
http://webcast.unesco.org/events/2022-06-TES-Pre-Summit/

EN: The interpretation of proceedings serves to facilitate communication and does not constitute an authentic record of the proceedings. Only the original speech is authentic. SP: La interpretación de las deliberaciones sirve para facilitar la comunicación y no constituye en modo alguno un acta au...