{"product_id":"ethiopia-ari-polyphonies-various","title":"Ethiopia - Ari Polyphonies","description":"The Ari people of South-West Ethiopia treat the human voice as a veritable instrument: exploring it's entire acoustic range by varying registers, timbres and vowel resonance; their grand-scale polyphonies are highly sophisticated, yet not without elements of spontaneity and surprise.    The period of great collective ceremonies begins at the end of the rainy season - marriages (wochmi), the end of harvesting (buk), funerals (efi) and the lifting of periods of mourning (chi: chi). Participants abandon their habitual activities to devote themselves to the celebration of a decisive life cycle event, amid omnipresent singing and dancing.    A strong contrast exists in Ari music between the complexity of the collective polyphonic structure and the sobriety of individual voices. A successful ensemble depends on good combinations of simple elements. Moreover, any apparently rigid polyphonic organization is counterbalanced by a certain flexibility in performance, evident in unpredictable entries of freely moving voices and in a wealth of variations. In Ari polyphonies, a variation is an open proposition, addressed to other musicians, provoking reaction and thereby developing the performance.","brand":"Ocora Radio-France","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":49183968690456,"sku":"3415820000807","price":20.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0687\/4346\/3192\/files\/4368927-3232695.jpg?v=1777495705","url":"https:\/\/hbdirect.com\/products\/ethiopia-ari-polyphonies-various","provider":"HBDirect","version":"1.0","type":"link"}