Dan Kurfirst + Mavrothi Kontanis

Spiral Music presents acoustic music every Wednesday evening at the base of the Museum’s spiral staircase. Artists who specialize in music from the Himalayas and South Asia are invited to forge a connection between their music and the art in the galleries.

About the Musicians

Dan Kurfirst is a New York City”“based percussionist, composer, and improviser. Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, his music reflects his upbringing among people from all corners of the world. His music incorporates aspects of Middle Eastern, West African, and Indian music while being clearly rooted in jazz and hip-hop.

Kurfist began traveling to Istanbul, Turkey, in 2009 to immerse himself in Middle Eastern music. He has studied under the master drummers Shane Shanahan, Nasheet Waits, and Tariq Snare in addition to an immersive period of study with Hakan Kaya and other local musicians in Istanbul. Dan currently leads the trio Subtle Realms, featuring Ben Cohen and Will McEvoy. He regularly performs with top musicians in NYC’s “world jazz” scene, including Tomchess, Brian Prunka, Gabriel Marin, Matt Darriau, Brandon Terzic, and Kane Maths. He serves as creative director of the American Sufi Project.

Mavrothi Kontanis is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, composer, and teacher born with roots in Halkidiki, Greece. Mavrothi specializes in the oud and has studied and performed with many of the world’s top players. His passion for performing is matched by his love of teaching and composing music; he was recently awarded a master’s of arts in teaching degree for music education from Montclair State University. By keeping an open mind while drawing from diverse experiences as both a Greek and an American, Mavrothi creates music that is both Eastern and Western, old and new.