Max ZT Summons Solace Through Meditative Improvisation On Daybreak

DAYBREAK OUT TODAY VIA SIX DEGREES RECORDS’ NEW SOUNDBALM IMPRINT, LISTEN HERE

WATCH MAX ZT PERFORM TITLE TRACK HERE

 

Today, Max ZT — the innovative musician whose performances on the hammered dulcimer synthesize various global music traditions into a placeless, sublime sound — shares Daybreak, his solo debut album for Six Degrees Records’ Soundbalm imprint. Throughout the seven improvised tracks on Daybreak, the Chicago-born, Brooklyn-based artist creates searching, deeply felt soundscapes for reflection and renewal. 

Listen to Daybreak here.

And watch Max ZT perform the album’s title track here.

With a history in music traditions from India to England, China to the Balkans, Iran to Appalachia and beyond, the hammered dulcimer is as worldly an instrument as there is. On Daybreak, Max ZT’s performances exemplify this global perspective as he fuses his background in the traditions of Irish and American folk music with techniques learned under the tutelage of musicians from Senegal’s Mandinko tradition and India’s santoor master Pandit Shivkumar Sharma.

As a result, Daybreak communicates a kind of musical compassion, an empathic vision inspired by the earliest days of COVID lockdown where Max would share home recorded improvisations with friends and family as a gesture of solidarity. “The reaction was shocking,” says Max, who ended up recording improvisations for dozens of people. “I know music has always been a balm for me, but to see the effect it had on others, on such a direct, one-to-one level, was honestly incredible.” 

Taken as a whole, Daybreak realizes the emotional possibilities of instrumental music as Max performs marvelous feats of simultaneous concentration and unconscious flow. As he explores the contours of his handmade dulcimer, listeners can be assured that they are being guided by an artist in awe of the practice of introspection — and one uniquely gifted at conjuring moments of invigorating beauty. 

Lead single “In It” finds clarity amidst uncertainty — listen HERE.

Lauded as the “Jimi Hendrix of dulcimer” by NPR, Max ZT has scored anEmmy-winning ESPN documentary, co-wrote the music for his wife Priya Darshini’s GRAMMY-nominated debut Periphery, and has shared stages with Ravi Shankar, Tinariwen, Jimmy Cliff and so many more. His band House Of Waters — who release music on Snarky Puppy’s GroundUP Music — have been deemed “truly mesmerizing” (All About Jazz) and “a sight to behold” (Timeout NY). House Of Waters have toured throughout the world including Europe and India, and their latest release is their 2019 album Rising, produced by GRAMMY-winner Guy Eckstine (Herbie Hancock).

ABOUT SOUNDBALM

Six Degrees Records’ new Soundbalm imprint is a new label focusing on the intersection of ambient music, new age & sound healing.

The label launched in 2021 with a series of immersive projects combining guided meditations with new, original music from some of the leading lights in the deep ambient music field.

Six Degrees co-founder Bob Duskis says: “From my days working at Windham Hill Records, to the 25 years that Six Degrees Records has existed, I’ve been particularly fascinated by music’s ability to heal, comfort & elevate us. The concept of “Music as Medicine” is very real to me and has become only more relevant during the Trump years and now the pandemic. I think we can all benefit from being transported by these immersive new sound journeys & I look forward to presenting new ways in which spoken word and beautiful music can be combined.”

 

DAYBREAK

All Of Us

In It

Unattended

Backwards Facing

Yield

And Bend

Suscipe

 

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