MORE ABOUT ESTHEMA
ESTHEMA, a WORLD FUSION ensemble out of Boston, MA (USA) creates their unique sound by fusing elements from the traditional music of the Eastern European Balkan region and the Near/Middle East with Progressive Rock and various styles of Jazz. The five musicians that shape the sound of ESTHEMA bring together both Western and Eastern influences, instruments, and musical concepts.
Members of ESTHEMA have spent a lifetime cultivating their individual musical voices. Onur Dilisen (violin) was born, raised, and began his studies in Turkey. In May 2009, Onur graduated from the Boston Conservatory with his Master’s Degree in violin performance. Tery Lemanis (oud & bouzouki), a graduate from Berklee College of Music’s guitar performance program studied bouzouki, oud, and Byzantine music in Greece as part of Berklee’s exchange program. Bruno Esrubilsky (drums & percussion), from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has studied, taught, and toured throughout Europe (Ireland, England, Portugal, Belgium, and Spain), Brazil, and the States and is currently enrolled at Berklee College of Music, majoring in Performance and Contemporary Writing and Production. Ignacio Long (bass), born in Patagonia, Argentina, has studied, taught, and performed in Buenos Aires, New York, and Boston. In 2007 Ignacio graduated from Berklee College of Music where he majored in Composition and Film Score. Andy Milas (guitar) has studied privately with some of Boston’s most acclaimed guitar voices - Joe Stump, Garrison Fewell and Bruce Bartlett. For almost two decades, Andy has been performing traditional and contemporary Greek music and has performed with, and written and arranged for various Progressive Rock and Metal, New Age, and Jazz projects. As people, the individuals in ESTHEMA come from very different places with very different experiences. As musicians, they bring those places and experiences together into one musical setting.
ESTHEMA’s first CD, A P A R T FROM THE REST (released July 2007) was voted as one of the Top 25 independent recordings of 2008 at Indie-Music.com. The six compositions that make up the CD were written by Andy Milas and arranged by the entire ensemble. All the compositions are laced with elements of Eastern and Western music: Western Jazz improvisation and Eastern Taxims, Latin Samba and Eastern Kasilama, Western modes, Aeolian and Phrygian and Eastern scales/maqams, Hijaz, Sabah, and Nihavent.
“This recording is nothing less than a true celebration of a number of different styles of world beat, jazz, rock, ethnic European and Middle Eastern traditional music.”
- Joel Simches, The Noise
“…a seamless blend of Eastern and Western motifs: Ethnic scales and meters intertwine delightfully with jazz-rock drums and bass beneath jazzy improv and winding melodies.”
- John Collinge, Progression
“Esthema has added something else to the normally staid jazz-rock sound – a heavy Eastern European influence – that makes the six instrumentals on Apart From The Rest a unique listening experience.”
- Todd Sikorski, Skope Magazine
With the release of their second CD, The Hereness and Nowness of Things, ESTHEMA has once again blurred the boundaries between Eastern and Western music. This time around, their exploration brought them down paths they had not yet ventured. Eastern Dance explores the beautiful major sounding Eastern maqam, Houzam, Illusion of Truth’s main groove is based on the Eastern Çiftetelli (Tsifteteli), and Arrhythmia is based on the Anatolian Zeybek dance (or Zeibekiko).
With the success of A P A R T FROM THE REST and the release of The Hereness and Nowness of Things, ESTHEMA’s efforts will concentrate on building a stronger domestic and international fan base through performances, distribution of CDs and mp3s, radio play, CD reviews, and more performances.
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