Harp and drum: two of the oldest instruments in the world, summoning images and sounds of healing, passion and peace. Created from ancient materials - wood and skin - harp and drum are symbols of both nature and humanity. Diana and Pezhham draw upon their native cultures, Ireland and Iran, to bring forth music which is at once current and old, familiar and surprising. Diana and Pezhham met at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, and immediately felt an artistic and spiritual affinity. Their music goes to the core of how we make sense of life as humans, how we communicate our hopes, dreams and fears, and how we fit in with the world around us. This album weaves together traditional, classical and original music from the breadth of Iran to Ireland. This massive scope is focused through the lens of two musicians and two instruments. Engineered, mixed and mastered by Holmes Ives, adding yet another angle of freshness and relevance. About the artists: Pezhham Akhavass is a master of the Persian percussion instruments Tombak and Daf. Born 1980 in Iran into the artistic Akhavass family, with the support of his renowned visual artist father Mostafa, Pezhham began studying Tombak at the age of five. In addition to Tombak and Daf, Pezhham performs on Setar, Tanbour and Oud, and has studied other percussion instruments including Indian Tabla under the guidance of Ostad Zakir Hussain, kanjira and gatam. Pezhham earned his BA from Sureh University, Tehran. He has toured and performed extensively at notable festivals and in prestigious venues throughout Iran, Turkey, Europe, the US, Australia, and Asia, sharing the stage with world master musicians such as YoYo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Imamyar Hasanov, and Diana Rowan. Pezhham also has worked with many of the top names in Persian music, including Shahram Nazeri, Hossein Alizadeh, Aliakbar Moradi, Saeid Farajpouri, and Hossein Omomi. Aside from working on many musical performance projects throughout his present home of California and beyond, Pezhham teaches and gives lectures and demonstrations in Persian music and performance. In 2014 Pezhham became a Global Music Director of San Francisco World Music Festival. Born in Ireland, Diana Rowan lived, performed and studied on the East Coast, in Europe and the Middle East before choosing Berkeley, California, where she received her Master of Music (MM) degree in classical piano. Each country left a strong impression on Diana's music, which interweaves Celtic, Eastern European, Near Eastern and classical arts and mythology. Diana has performed everywhere from the Australian Harp Festival to Washington DC's Smithsonian to Eastern European cathedrals. She teaches to advanced level and can be heard on many CDs and soundtracks for film and TV, including her three solo albums Panta Rhei, The Bright Knowledge, and upcoming As Above, So Below. She splits her time between the San Francisco Bay Area and Eastern Europe, while pursuing a PhD in harp composition at the National Academy of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria. Diana believes strongly in the healing power of music and plays in hospitals and healing centers via her company Sage Harpists. We thank Bijan Marashi and Priya Assal for their generosity on so many fronts; Bryan Seet for his constant love and technical support; Virginia Grandi for her devotion and enthusiasm; Holmes Ives for his vision, friendship and artistry; and Mohammad Kheirkhah for his defining photography work. TRACK LIST All song titles taken from the poetry of Rumi, the 13th century Persian mystic: 1. The stones start spinning (Bucimis) A Bulgarian dance in 15/16, this piece careens through three different keys and could make even stones dance. "You appear; all studying wanders..." 2. The full moon is inside your house (Lo yisa Goi/Kol HaNeshamah/Ablakomba) A medley of three traditional songs about peace, one Hebrew, one Sufi and one Hungarian, meld together in luminous harmony. "There is no need to go outside..." 3. Tidal (Diana Rowan) Inspired by Japan's harp, the koto, featuring the ancient, global pentatonic mode. 4. The rose is tearing off her gown (Ma Belle Si Ton Ame/Tourdion) Two French Renaissance songs about intoxicating delights. "Tipsy like the breeze up to some new foolishness..." 5. The voice of water (Arran Boat Song/Thalassaki Mou) Two songs of the sea, one Irish and one Greek, bond these sea-faring nations to all others like them "We can't help being thirsty..." 6. The ground cries out (Lyke Wake Dirge/Praise Bridget) Two ancient chants from Ireland and England bring together heaven and earth, past and present. "I feel like the ground, astonished at what the atmosphere has brought to it..." 7. Tombak's Czardas (Pezhham Akhavass) Using Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik as a jumping off point, Pezhham demonstrates how music is the universal language, inspiring across time and space. 8. Who turns the sky wheel? An improvisation in 5/4 turns and takes flight. "An ocean for all beings..." 9. Spirit like a waterwheel (To Rinaki) This Greek traditional song has a young man suggesting his love pour water on the sidewalk so that he may slip, fall and have an excuse to be allowed in by her mother! "A flame doesn't consider the size of the woodpile..." 10. Spellbound (Diana Rowan) Written while in Thailand, a country that casts its spell over everyone who journeys there. 11. Spring giddiness (Fig for a Kiss/The Butterfly) A joyous jig plus slip jig from Ireland dance with Persian percussion passion. "There are hundred of ways to kneel and kiss the ground..."