Amir & Nikolai
Oorzhak

Shamanic Throat Singing from the Tuvan Republic

Nikolai Oorzhak (Republic of Tuva, Russia) is the Hereditary Shaman and a master of "Khoomei" Throat Singing.

In Tuva, shamans often inherit their abilities, and Nikolay was no exception. There were shamans on his mother's side and his father was a famous shaman of Tuva, so, naturally, Nikolay started a path to becoming a healer too.

Sometimes it is hard to believe that these vibrations are produced by one man. The Shaman of Nine Clouds, as he is known, excels in all guttural singing styles: sygryt, kargyra, ezengiler, borbanadyr and khoomei. He is considered ‘khoomeizhi’ (a guttural singing khoomei master) both at home and abroad.

During performances, Nicolai plays intuitively, using national instruments such as the igil, drums, Jew’s harps and rain sticks. The sounds he produces touch the essence of every human being, the subtlest inner states, calming the mind and expanding the consciousness.

Today, Nikolai also reveals a unique talent as a jazz improviser and he recently developed a new direction in ethno-jazz called "khoomei-jazz". He is currently welcomed as an honorary guest at different folklore and jazz festivals in Russia, Europe and the Americas.