Who Framed The Frame Drum: the chosen instrument of the chosen people
SAN DIEGO — For over twenty-five years Marla Leigh Goldstein has been a proponent of the frame drum in the world music community, and she brings to us, from the land of Israel, her superb debut album The Rhythms of Tof Miriam, released on May 15th. The title track, seen above, is available as a music video on YouTube, so make sure to whet your musical appetite with the resonant frame drum beats of Marla Leigh, accompanied by the highest order of musicianship of the ensemble (oud, mandol, ney, kamancheh, and cello), before delving into the full album, available on a variety of musical platforms, including Bandcamp, Spotify, and Apple Music.
Marla Leigh is a seasoned musician, yet on her second ever trip to Israel she also made her first album. The title track Rhythms of Tof Miriam was meant to be a standalone single, recorded at Onyx Studios in Rosh Pina, Israel. The music video, shot in the Negev by Israeli cinematographer Noam Chojnowski, was Marla Leigh’s impetus for arriving at Israel’s desert lands, retracing ancient musical contours in the same geographies that were home to Miriam the Prophetess. The full album came about due to undeniable force of musical will by the ensemble. Meira Segal’s ney flute melodic arrangements of Marla’s tunes were too enticing to pass up.
Marla Leigh, an accomplished pianist and flautist, is credited as composer, yet the album’s intricate and distinct Mideast and Levant influences are all to do with the collaborative efforts between Marla Leigh and the renowned Israeli artists that form the ensemble: renowned Israeli oud player and composer Yair Dalal, Meira Segal (ney), Ori Werner (kamancheh), Shahar Kaufman (mandol), Leat Sabbah (cello), Oren Tsor (violin & viola) and Gavriel Fiske (frame drum). Their musical conversation is engrossing, and it is easy to imagine how inviting it was for Marla Leigh to give her music away to these captivating musicians, and entrust her compositions in their care, and to interpretive powers. It is safe to say that Rhythms of Tof Miriam is a full-bodied musical work that deserves listeners’ undivided attention. Devotees of world and sacred musics will find the sounds of the frame drum, oud, mandol, ney, by the experts hands of the ensemble to be a sonorous accompaniment homeward.
Marla Leigh welcomes us into the fold by letting listeners take a virtual tour in the studio. Lovers of world and sacred music get a glimpse into the inner workings of a musical language shared between master musicians, who draw inspiration on their respective instruments from a variety of sources. The video of the ensemble, all of them working their magic in the studio is a must see!
The musical practices of these musicians can be measured not only in the years upon years of honing an individual musical craft, but also on a time-continuum that stretches back to beyond what is readily available at the surface features of a music. By delving into nuanced music-making, informed by countless cultural dots that connect the performers into a musical apparatus that is held together beautifully, the ensemble’s sound is a world music tour de force. The responsiveness of Marla Leigh’s frame drum to Yair Dalal’s oud is delicately poised, as if the two instruments exist in an ancient echo chamber that is tailor-made for their mutual resonance. It is as if we are afforded an intimate look into a secluded musical family life, with all of its intricacies and lush bounty laid bare in the open. Marla Leigh speaks power to this perfect musical storm and meeting of the musical minds when relating that the genesis of the album followed an organic path emanating from Marla Leigh’s own compositional prowess, deep collaboration with the ensemble, and a complete trust in the musicality and sensibilities of each musician.
I’m in favor of rhythm, as it has no substitute, and the ensemble, led by Marla Leigh’s drumming, weaves rhythmic pulses as if these are alive. In a sense, music does come to life in Rhythms of Tof Miriam, and Marla Leigh’s ever-inviting music provides the perfect occasion for immersion in high-fidelity sound, capturing musicianship of a stellar ensemble at the peak of its form.
Make sure to join in for Marla Leigh’s May 17th, 12:30 p.m. PST Livestream Concert and Q&A You don’t want to miss the music! You don’t want to miss world music at it’s best!
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Omer Zalmanowitz is a writer, musician, and teacher living in Southern California. An enthusiast of all things woodsy and montane. He says his greatest achievement to date is having fallen in love with the world over and over again.