Samâ with the MTO Zendeh Delan ensemble
To mark the end of the carte blanche To Breathe– Constellation given to South Korean artist Kimsooja, la Bourse de Commerce is presenting a Samâ concert of Sufi music with whirling dervishes and musicians from the MTO Zendeh Delan ensemble.
Program
7:00 p.m.: Discussion on the Samâ by Alexandra Baudelot, Director of the Museum of Sufi Art and Culture (Auditorium, 45 min.)
7:45 p.m.: Samâ (Rotunda, 20min)
In the Museum Rotunda, where To Breathe is installed, the monumental, intangible work by Kimsooja who, in hollowing out the architecture of the Bourse de Commerce with an immense mirror across the floor, has also generated an awareness that our body is an axis linking the sky to the earth, the MTO Zendeh Delan (R) ensemble presents the different movements of Samâ.
The event is introduced by a lecture on Samâ in the Auditorium by Alexandra Baudelot, Director of the Museum of Sufi Art and Culture (TM).
Samâ, which means spiritual hearing, is the bodily expression of a Sufi’s inner journey. In the thirteenth century, the Sufi and poet Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī (1207 – 1273), who had reached a state of complete self-awareness and pure joy, began to turn. These meditative movements form part of an inner state in which Samâ is seen as an outward manifestation of the soul's inner quest. Those who practice Samâ, often students at a Sufi school, turn around their heart like the planets around the sun, their right hand pointed up at the sky to receive divine grace, and their left hand pointed toward the ground to distribute it to humanity.
Samâ is the expression of listening to one’s inner world; the individuals who spin during the Samâ are “immersed in their own microcosm, creating new worlds and coming into contact with eternity” (Jale Erzen). It is practiced to the sound of ancient Eastern instruments (ney flute, tar, zither, and the daf drum) mixed with Western instruments (piano, guitar, and harp). Samâ resonates particularly strongly with Kimsooja's installation, as the body becomes a spiritual vehicle suspended between heaven and earth.
Zendeh Delan, which means “awakened hearts”, is an ensemble composed of students of Sufism who create contemporary Sufi music under the direction of Professor Nader Angha, Professor at the MTO Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Sufism. Deeply rooted in traditional Sufi melodies and Persian musical modes, Zendeh Delan’s creativity also embraces a number of contemporary musical genres, harmoniously blending popular and classical styles from across the globe.
Samâ, accompained by Sufi music, including Tar, Daf and Harp.
On the occasion of the Heritage Days, two other Samâ presentations will take place on Sunday, 22 September, at 4:00 and 5:00 p.m. Reservations are now full. Tickets will be available at the door on the night of the event, subject to availability.
This program was made possible in collaboration with the MTO Museum of Sufi Art and Culture, which is scheduled to open on 28 September in Chatou with its inaugural exhibition Un Ciel intérieur [“An Inner Sky”].