Upcoming Events

Accompanied on the oud/ud by Nicolas Royer-Artuso, the master Fikret Karakaya will demonstrate the richness of Ottoman melodies and the modes specific to this music, as well as the art of ornamentation, through his playing of the kemençe, a small lyre with a powerful sound. This exceptional concert will be a tribute to the great composers of the Ottoman era and to the art of improvisation (taksim).

Firket Karakaya is a singer, kemençe and çeng player, composer, musicologist, writer and instrument maker. Until his retirement, he was a musician and presenter for TRT (Turkey’s national radio station). He is the founder and director of the Bezmara Ensemble, which has been invited to perform in many countries, and has eleven albums to its credit.
Nicolas Royer-Artuso is a composer, musician (oud, electronic violin and fretless guitar), linguist, musicologist and writer. His work has been presented in Germany, England, Armenia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Finland, France, Georgia, Holland, Italy, Lebanon, Lithuania, Poland, Turkey and the United States.

Students concert – 7 June at 2 p.m.
📍 Location: Parc Lahaie: 4921, boulevard Saint-Laurent
Montréal (Québec)
(If the weather does not permit, the concert will take place at the Centre des musiciens du monde, 5043 rue Saint-Dominique, just across the street)

Programme:
Coming soon

Come one, come all to enjoy this wonderful musical afternoon! 🌞🎵

Voice of the body
A musical experience in which the body becomes a veritable instrument of Brazilian music. With songs, rhythms and movement, this musical experience takes you on a sensitive journey through the living sounds of the body and the voice.
With :
Lu Horta: voice and body percussion
Marcelo Effori: percussion and sampler
Gabriel Shwartz: guitar

Lu Horta is a Brazilian artist (singer, composer, body percussionist and teacher). She has a degree in popular music from the Public University of Campinas (UNICAMP). A founding member of the Barbatuques body percussion group, she has helped to create five albums and collaborated on soundtracks (Tropa de Elite, Trash – City of Hope, Rio 2 and The Boy and the World, nominated for an Oscar in 2016). Lu Horta also has a prolific solo career, with critically acclaimed albums such as Paraíso Eu in 2009 and A Noiva da Cidade in 2013. A committed artist, she uses her voice for social causes, notably in a campaign against violence against women. Since 2023, she has lived in Montreal, where she is involved in artistic collaborations with local artists and educational projects with Orff Québec, UQAM, the Maison des arts participatifs and the Centre des musiciens du monde.

Fulani music from Burkina Faso combines song, n’goni and rhythm to tell the epic story of Fulani life and culture. The deep melodies of the n’goni (a plucked string instrument originally from West Africa) evoke the vast plains and stories handed down from generation to generation, while the percussion adds an earthly dimension to this celestial music, inviting us to dance and celebrate.

Dicko Fils (Moulaye Dicko) is a musician from Burkina Faso of Fulani origin. A master of the kamale n’goni, he has made a name for himself with his melodious voice and virtuoso playing, fusing the Fulani and Mandingo traditions. After studying the Koran in Mali, he moved to Abidjan, where he discovered reggae, before founding his group Le Faso Kanou in 1992. His first album, Tounga (2005), marked the start of a prolific career with regular releases until 2016. His song Denke Denke became an anthem in West African clubs. In 2016, he won the Kundé d’Or, Burkina Faso’s highest musical award, as well as several other prizes, including Best Modern Traditionally Inspired Song with Wakati. In March 2025, he released his 12th album, La Route, recorded between Burkina Faso and Montreal. This opus blends Afrobeat, Mandingo blues and messages of peace, love and living together.

Turkish folk music is a living heritage from the many cultures of Anatolia. Rich in regional diversity, it expresses everyday emotions through songs drawing on personal stories. Passed on by türkü singers and aşıks, it combines oral traditions, improvisation, poetry and instruments such as the saz (lute).

Born in Ankara and originally from Malatya in Turkey, Sema Gültekin has been immersed in Turkish folk music since childhood. Trained in baglama and music theory, she developed her stage experience at secondary school, while pursuing an MBA at Istanbul’s Yeditepe University. She perfected her repertoire at the Erdal Erzincan Music Centre. Since moving to Montreal in 2022, she has been helping to promote Turkish folk music through concerts and workshops, both on the local music scene and within Montreal’s Turkish community.

Georgian polyphony is one of the oldest and most complex of singing traditions. Family singing plays an essential role, having enabled it to survive through centuries of invasions and occupations. For Shalva Makharashvili, Andrea Kuzmich and their sons Shalva-Lucas and Gabo, singing is as natural as breathing, rooted in family celebrations rather than stage performances.

Ori Shalva carry on this tradition in Toronto, more than 9,000 km from Georgia. The authenticity of their music stems from years of dedication and a musical heritage handed down from generation to generation.

Ori Shalva, also known as the Makharashvili family, is a unique musical ensemble. Formed in Toronto by Shalva Makharashvili and Andrea Kuzmich, both from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds, the group was born out of a shared passion for Georgian polyphony. For over twenty years, together with their children, they have been passing on and keeping alive this complex singing tradition, recognised by UNESCO as part of humanity’s intangible heritage. Their performances offer audiences a rare opportunity to appreciate a living tradition that is still largely unknown outside the Caucasus.