Reena Esmail

Dhire-dhire - Little by little

Dhire-dhire sets a 'dohe' (couplet) by the fifteenth-century Indian mystic poet Kabir on the topic of patience. Esmail explores the soundworld of the Hindustani classical tradition, with characteristic vocal ornamentation in the solo lines, and the score includes both devanagari script and a transliteration, for ease of reading. Performance notes and a pronunciation guide are included in the octavo, and a video guide by the composer is available through a companion website.

Reena Esmail works between the worlds of Indian and Western classical music, to bring communities together through the creation of equitable musical spaces. Esmail holds degrees from The Juilliard School and the Yale School of Music, and has written for Kronos Quartet, Albany Symphony and Conspirare. A resident of Los Angeles, Esmail is the 20-23 Swan Family Artist in Residence with Los Angeles Master Chorale, and the 20-21 Composer in Residence with Seattle Symphony. She is the Artistic Director of Shastra, a non-profit organization that promotes cross-cultural music connecting musical traditions of India and the West.