Jariori Records is an independent label from the Russian Far East that is not just about music, but about preserving living memory. Its mission is to record voices from far away villages and remote communities, work with tradition bearers, and give this music a new life. The word “jariori” in Nanai means “to sing” — and that idea lies at the heart of the project.
Behind the label is Seva Luzhanski, a musician who has traveled from the post-punk underground scene to fieldwork in folklore. Once a member of an experimental band Ma Gak Pa, he now travels to remote villages, recording songs that previously existed only in oral tradition. As he puts it “If I can recognize music by its motives — what are ours, here in the Far East”
These trips are both celebration and hard work long planning, long recordings, long journeys back, and even longer processes of transcription and release. Everything is self-funded. “The deeper you go, the more you realize you understand nothing,” he admits. But it is precisely in that process that something real emerges.
Nanai music, Seva Luzhanski explains in one interview, is unlike anything else microtonal, improvisational, fragmented, at once sad and joyful, deeply personal. It is music that imitates nature — and resists easy categorization.
Among the 2026 releases already featured in the Russian World Music Chart are three:
Emche Beldy’s “
Doo Dyarini” is a warm and strikingly alive album. Nikolai Chubakovich Beldy plays in a non-standard guitar tuning, creating a sound that feels entirely his own. The music carries a rare sense of calm and light, and even the sounds of the street outside his home become part of the sonic world.
Raisa Khodzher & Aleksandr Samar’s “
Nengnie Dichini” presents recordings made in winter but released in spring 2026 — because one of the central songs speaks about the arrival of spring. This thoughtful decision turns the release into a quiet ritual.
Finally, the archival project “
Nani” (Part 2) features recordings by Nikolai Batunovich Kile from the 1970s–80s. The performers remain unknown, but their voices continue to resonate — thanks to the work of linguists and dedicated collaborators.
Luzhanski emphasizes that the label is not about “promotion” in the usual sense. It is about making the music accessible. So that one day, someone can simply say “Alexa, play Raisa Khodzher” — and hear these voices.
jariori Records is about respect for roots, for people, and for the land. And perhaps the most important thing this music offers a modern listener is a sense of gratitude — to the place we live in, and to those who came before us.
Daryana Antipova
