NEMUER – to Release Ancient Egyptian Album and Produce Art Film
- Posted on 17-09-2023
Czech Music Project Nemuer to Release Ancient Egyptian Album and Produce Art Film
Teamed up with egyptologists and artist Klara Sedlo they will bring the Book of the Dead back to life.
After years of research and collaboration with Egyptologists, Michael Zann, founder of Czech music project NEMUER, has composed an ancient Egyptian themed album. Teaming up with Czech pop-surreal artist Klara Sedlo and film experts, they are embarking on the creation of an art music film that will be rich in symbolism and evoke a mysterious atmosphere, drawing from the texts of the Book of the Dead. The album and film will transport audiences on a fantastic journey through the Egyptian underworld.
Alongside playing and recording historical instruments, NEMUER will introduce a groundbreaking element by singing in Ancient Egyptian with a newly reconstructed pronunciation. Through the expertise of renowned Egyptologist Dr. Christian de Vartavan, listeners will have the unprecedented opportunity to experience the authentic sound of this ancient language. The art for the film and album’s cover will be inspired by original Ancient Egyptian imagery and mythology.
Zann went to great lengths to infuse authenticity into the project. He extensively studied Ancient Egyptian literature and mythology, extracting lyrics from over three thousand-year-old funerary texts such as the Papyrus of Nu. He consulted leading Czech Egyptologists and even traveled to Egypt to acquire musical instruments and draw inspiration firstand. There, he engaged with Copts, direct descendants of Ancient Egyptians, and thanks to them discovered a pharaonic tune that he incorporated into his work.
Prior to the album release, a crowdfunding campaign was launched, primarily targeting the film. A music video has just been released, showcasing one track from the album, providing a glimpse of what to expect if enough funds are gathered. Supporters have the opportunity to preview the project’s art and music, and gain unique rewards like film props or even the opportunity to appear as painted figures. The album is set to be released on November 4th.
Main links: http://www.nemuer.com/
Socials: https://www.facebook.com/nemuer, https://www.instagram.com/nemuer.music
About NEMUER
NEMUER is an ambient folk music project formed in 2014 by Czech composer and multi-instrumentalist Michael Zann. His great passion for music, paganism, and history has allowed him to capture something deep and ancient within us that touches listeners all around the world. By combining throat singing, hypnotic rhythms of percussion, historical instruments, dead languages, and elements of electronic music, NEMUER creates a transcendental experience. The name “NEMUER” refers to an ancient Egyptian deity, serving as a mediator between the sun god and humans.
NEMUER’s concerts are performed as unique rituals, taking audiences on an unforgettable journey through time and fantasy. They have performed at renowned festivals (such as Castle Party [PL], Menuo Juodaragis [LT], Cernunnos [FR], Trolls et Legends [BE]) and have been invited to perform at Festival Mediaval (DE), Midgardsblot (NO), and Brutal Assault (CZ).
Genre: World / Folk / Avantgarde / Music Archeology / Ambient
Similar sounding artists: Dead Can Dance, Wardruna, Heilung
Latest release: Urðarbrunnr (2019, Old Norse-themed)
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5YLlSPiJ0oTTwToxWrmNVZ
About Klara Sedlo
Klara Sedlo is a Czech painter and graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. She likes everything that is difficult to understand from first glance – in her figurative paintings, she focuses on dreams, the subconscious, and symbolism. One of her most significant painting series so far is Voynich’s botany. Klara Sedlo has been long fascinated by the illustrations of plants in The Voynich Manuscript – an extensive piece from the 14th century that is yet to be deciphered. She decided to paint over one hundred simple drawings from the script.
She has regular exhibitions in the Czech Republic as well as abroad. Her paintings can be seen in exhibitions worldwide. Some of her paintings were also used in a new Czech crime thriller Nightline. She was a finalist at the international competitions BBA Art Prize 2019 and Mostyn Open 21. The colors in all her paintings are mixed from three elementary colors and white. She is a synesthetic – she sees numbers and letters in colors.
Website: https://www.klarasedlo.com
Socials: https://www.facebook.com/KlaraSedloArt, https://www.instagram.com/klarasedlo
About Dr Christian de Vartavan FLS FRSA
Dr de Vartavan was educated at University College London’s Institute of Archaeology, where he gained world fame in Egyptology by discovering part of the forgotten plant material from king Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Kew Royal Botanical Gardens. Later he became the founder of Egyptology in Armenia and the director of its first Egyptology research centre, earning in 2013 a state national award for his groundbreaking research. There he discovered the secret chiasmic structure of the most important ritual in Ancient Egypt, the Daily Ritual, performed only by pharaoh himself or his First Prophet in his absence. Dr de Vartavan’s work earned the rare honor of becoming part of the UK’s National Archive during his lifetime, and is kept by University of Oxford’s Griffith Institute.
His recently published “Vocalised Dictionary of Ancient Egyptian” not only presents for the first time a large corpus of vocalised Ancient Egyptian words, but also reveals the unknown presence of various types of vowels in the hieroglyphic script, and how to read them. The discovery of these previously unrecognised vowels and the principles regulating them open new doors to the vocalisation of the Ancient Egyptian language. They also lay the foundations for the future comprehension of ancient Egyptian texts, poetry in particular, by adding sound to meaning.
Book: https://projectispublishing.com/vocalised-dictionary-of-ancient-egyptian/
Profile: https://independent.academia.edu/ChristianTutundjiandeVartavan