Working with Harmony Theatre, J adapted a children’s book from Turkmenistan into a one act stage play called “Mamed and the Golden Coins”.
Though playing a Turkmen two-stringed dutar would have been more appropriate, J crafted a soundtrack for the play using an Egyptian oud. With the exception of “Mamed’s Theme” which is based on the traditional Turkmen song “Lale Lale”, the rest of the soundtrack is not Turkmen.
Having lived in Turkmenistan for over two years, J took inspiration from the music he’d been exposed to while there and wove it into the soundtrack.