#4051: New Music By Syrian Musicians & Composers
Hear an hour of orchestral, electronic, & improvised music – all written & played by musicians from Syria, including works by Maya Youssef, Basel Rajoub, Waed Bouhassoun, & Kinan Azmeh.
For this New Sounds, hear new music by Syrian musicians & composers, many of whom no longer live in their native land. There’s music from Maya Youssef, a London-based virtuoso of the kanun, a traditional Syrian 78-stringed plucked zither. She leads an ensemble featuring oud, cello and percussion on her new record, Syrian Dreams. Also, listen to music by Paris-based Syrian singer and oud player Waed Bouhassoun, who has played music with the early music ensembles led by Jordi Savall. From her 2014 record, L'âme du luth, or “The soul of the lute,” hear poetry which she has set to music.
Sample the highly danceable Syrian electronic music, music called dabke, which is heard at weddings and parties. Nowadays, it’s performed by a singer, a mijwiz player, (a reed instrument that kind of sounds like bagpipes), and highly danceable beats. Hear classical Arab music by the Aleppo-born, Swiss-based saxophonist, Basel Rajoub, and his ensemble, along with a work by Parisian-based Syrian-born Abed Azrie, who sets to music Sufi poems, and classical Arabic poetry.
There's music by Syriana, a London-based project of Syrian kanun player Abdullah Chhadeh and English bass player Nick Page. Their collective also includes the Egyptian percussionist, Sherif Ibrahim, Syrian accordionist, Mazin Abu Sayf, & Jordan-raised Palestinian singer and oud player, Nizar Al-Issa. Hear the title track of their record, Road to Damascus. Then listen to music by Syrian composer Kinan Azmeh for violin and processing for Cornelius Dufallo. It’s called “How Many Would it Take” - dedicated to the innocent victims of Syria’s tragic civil war and humanitarian crisis. Also, listen to a live 2016 recording from London, featuring former and present members of the Syrian National Orchestra Of Arabic Music. These are musicians who had been displaced by the war, and reunited by Damon Albarn’s collective, Africa Express.
PROGRAM #4051, New Music from Syria (First Aired: 11/28/2017)
ARTIST: Kronos Quartet
WORK: Omar Souleyman: La Sidounak Sayyada (i'll Prevent Hunters from Hunting you), arr. Jacob Garchik, excerpt [2:00]
RECORDING: A Thousand Thoughts
SOURCE: Nonesuch 536952
INFO: http://www.nonesuch.com/albums/a-thousand-thoughts
ARTIST: Maya Youssef
WORK: Bombs Turn into Roses [3:57]
RECORDING: Syrian Dreams
SOURCE: Harmonia Mundi HMM902349
INFO: Due out Dec. 8, 2017 | Available at Apple Music, Amazon.com
ARTIST: Abed Azrie
WORK: Le Souffle de la Brise [4:58]
RECORDING: Aromates
SOURCE: Nonesuch #79241
INFO: Out of print. Try Amazon.com
ARTIST: Syriana
WORK: Al Araby [5:57]
RECORDING: Road to Damascus
SOURCE: Real World CDRW 176
INFO: realworldrecords.com
ARTIST: Basel Rajoub
WORK: Asia [5:13]
RECORDING: Asia
SOURCE: Edict Records
INFO: facebook.com/basel.rajoub.official.page | sorianaproject.com
ARTIST: Various - Ahmad Al Kosem
WORK: Love Is Not a Joke [6:36]
RECORDING: Dabke - Sounds of the Syrian Houran
SOURCE: Sham Palace 002
INFO: forcedexposure.com
ARTIST: Cornelius Dufallo
WORK: Kinan Azmeh: How Many Would It Take [6:34]
RECORDING: Journaling 2
SOURCE: Innova 960
INFO: innova.mu
ARTIST: Waed Bouhassoun
WORK: Ana Man Ahwa [6:12]
RECORDING: L'âme du luth
SOURCE: Buda Musique 3792908
INFO: budamusique.com
ARTIST: Musicians of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music / ft. Mounir Troudi
WORK: Rakeb 3al Hamra [6:16]
RECORDING: Africa Express Presents… the Orchestra of Syrian Musicians & Guests
SOURCE: Transgressive Records
INFO: shop.transgressiverecords.com
