Shodekeh (enlarge)

Since Alash and beatboxer Shodekeh first met in 2011, they have forged an ongoing friendship and an ever evolving musical collaboration. Shodekeh, based in Baltimore, Maryland, is a vocal percussionist and breath artist who serves as musical accompanist and composer in residence for Towson University’s Department of Dance, as well as dance accompanist at Johns Hopkins Peabody Institute. Shodekeh often tours with Alash in the States, and he has become a regular visitor to Tuva. The 2016 documentary film Shu-de!*, directed by Michael Faulkner, documents Shodekeh’s musical journey to Tuva and features Alash and other musicians (trailer, review).

Alash and Shodekeh continue to build a unique musical and cultural bridge between Baltimore, Maryland, and Kyzyl, Tuva. Bady-Dorzhu Ondar of Alash joined Shodekeh and friends to create the music for Traveler, a short video animated by students at the Maryland Institute College of Art Animation Department. Shodekeh's project EMBODY, dedicated to music created by no instruments other than the human voice, has teamed up with Alash to combine Tuvan music with American hip hop. Most recently, a number of Baltimore hip hop musicians joined Bady-Dorzhu and Shodekeh in recording the album Embodiments.

*Musicians often exclaim "Shu-de!" at the end of a song. It can be translated as "giddy-up" or "let's go."