Yeshi Dolma

Yeshi Dolma is the culmination of ten years of collaboration between Tenzin Choegyal from Tibet and Australian Katherine Philp. They come from totally different cultural backgrounds, however, as in many cases, the emotional mystery of music brought a Western classical-trained lead cellist together with an exiled traditional singer and multi-instrumentalist. Added to the mix is the 20-stringed Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra, which start the album by playing Philp’s composition ‘Dolma’ (Tara, the mother of all Buddhas). The richly structured single chord is the foundation for a sweet violin solo partly based on a north-eastern Tibetan melody. It segues into ‘Nomad Song’, a composition by Choegyal in which his powerful and emotional keening voice sings about flying home to a country where there has been a cultural genocide since 1959.

Co-composed, the track ‘Wo La So’ starts with Choegyal’s speedily plucked dranyen (a six-string fretless Tibetan lute). Philp introduces the beautiful melody on the cello and then Tenzin’s more plaintive voice sings of letting go and accepting change. ‘Yeshi Dolma’, sung with heartfelt gentleness, is inspired by an old folk tune and honours Yeshi Dolma, Choegyal’s late mother. She was forced to flee her homeland when communist China occupied Tibet. The whole release is a highly fruitful joining of musical souls.