Salam Music: Sheherazaad

The composer and singer Sheherazaad grew up in a "fanatically art-centered South Asian-American household," as she describes it herself. Early on influenced by Indian classical music, she transforms her search for her roots into an enchanting and simultaneously radically new sound world – a music that seems almost otherworldly. With her EP "Qasr," Sheherazaad presents a compelling work about origin, alienation, and self-empowerment. Produced by Grammy winner Arooj Aftab, "Qasr" unfolds South Asian vocal improvisation in connection with microtonal melancholy and experimental reduction.

In it, Sheherazaad explores what it means to live between cultures – not as a rupture, but as a continuous movement. Her voice serves as instrument, anchor, and departure. "Qasr" (Urdu for fortress) was created during a time of familial distance and societal polarization. Indeed, "Qasr" is a monument: it embodies the burden of displacement, the contradictory pull and attraction of the diaspora, and the problem of erasure, of forgetting one's own roots.

"It was truly maddening that the music that corresponds to my roots did not yet exist. Therefore, it was clear to me that I had to create it myself," says Sheherazaad. With "Qasr," she designs her fortress and simultaneously encourages her listeners to create their own impossible dream worlds.

In collaboration with Salam Music & Arts Festival.
Cast:
Sheherazaad, vocals
Alan Keary (Shunya), bass and violin
Jay Chakravorty, baritone ukulele, piano, and synthesizer
Pharoah Russell, drums