| Some 15 miles from the Lebanese capital Beirut, on”Mount Harissa”, stands a huge statue of “Our Lady of Lebanon”. The name “Mount Harissa” was adopted by Duke Elington’s Far East Suite movement and was one of the band’s last memories. After Beirut, they traveled to Turkey; there they learned of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, which forced the cancellation of the remaining weeks of the tour. “Mount Harissa” is really two pieces: the haunting first theme, delineated by Ellington’s expressive piano, and the hard-swinging second section, which is given over to Gonsalves. As Gonsalves winds down and the band gives way to the return of the main theme, Ellington’s arpeggios shower the transition, and the piece relearns the energized serenity with which it began. As a composition, it is oceanic; as a performance, merely unalterable. |
Amir John Haddad: Fandangos de Huelva
Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011| Amir-John Haddad was born In Freiburg Germany (Black Forest) in 1975 with a Colombian and Palestinian background. He was raised and educated in Germany and lived for a short while in Bogotá (Colombia). Since childhood he hasn’t stopped travelling and has been always in contact with music. His family environment taught him how to play music by ear. He learned music, his future language, by oral transmission and was only 8 years old when he officially started studying the Flamenco guitar after learning Arabic oud at home by the hand of his father and first teacher Rimon Haddad. Amir started playing live at school venues when he was 7 years old and by the age of 12 he gave his first public concert on a “real” stage. Since a very small age Amir was led to diverse music styles from South American folklore to classical music, classical Arabic and Oriental music over to African music, Flamenco music… as well as western influences like Jazz, Rock, Funk, Pop, Metal, Fusion… “When I was seven years old our TV quit working and my parents didn’t replace it so from that moment on I was raised without TV at home and that was very important to my playing and my innocent and creative approach to music!” |
Robby Ameen: Virtuoso Drummer
Sunday, October 25th, 2009| Read the full article |
 
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Robby Ameen continues to build a solid reputation of a professional drummer with a unique and intriguing drumming style. He is truly a veteran of Afro-Cuban drumming, a music style to which he is dedicated with an active repertoire in the United States and Latin America. We caught up with Robby upon his return from Peru last week at the start of his US and Latin America tours with the renowned Ruben Blades Seis de Solar. The tour will span cities such as Miami, New York, Caracas, Lima, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Hato Rey and Valencia.
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Gabriel Yared
Sunday, October 25th, 2009Gabriel Yared (born 7 October 1949) is a Lebanese Academy Award winning composer, best known for his work in French and American cinema. Born in Beirut, Lebanon, his work in France included the scores for Betty Blue and Camille Claudel. He later began working on English language films, winning an Oscar for his score for The English Patient and nominations for The Talented Mr. Ripley and Cold Mountain.
Tunisian all women orchestra
Sunday, October 25th, 2009Created in 1992 by Amina Srarfi El Azifet (the musicians) is the first female conductor of classical music in the Arab world to add an undeniable richness to the music scene in Tunisia. Deploying an exquisite blend of Eastern and Western instruments, all of this classical pieces from Tunisian heritage, Middle Eastern and Andalusian freshly rearranged to reinvent old favorites to the rhythms of flamenco rumba, tango and waltz, with a femininity and refinement absolute.
Amina Srarfi, its conductor, was born into a family of musicians. She is first prize for violin, music teacher, founder and director of Kaddour Srarfi Conservatory of Music and Dance.
Oud
Sunday, October 25th, 2009The Oud is often seen as the predecessor of the western lute, distinguished primarily by being without frets. The Oud is by far a leading instrument in Arabic music but it is also used in other forms of music such as Greek traditional music and Spanish Flamenco. The plucking technique of the Oud has a similar function to that of the thumb in Flamenco guitar playing.
Zajal
Sunday, October 25th, 2009A form of popular poetry that is improvised and chanted in villages of the Levant region. This tradition is very strong in Lebanese villages and represents a very old form of entertainment. Zajal sessions usually take place in the evening, where 3 to 5 poets sit around a table in front of a large audience. The table would have been prepared for the poets with Arak spirit and mezza platters of Lebanese foods. The poets engage in a heated dual of poetry around a variety of themes such as satire and love. The chanting is usually accompanied by derbakkeh (Drum) and Daff (Tambourine) and clapping. Zajal is also used in traditional weddings and festivals.
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Casey Kasem
Sunday, October 25th, 2009Kemal Amin “Casey” Kasem, is an American radio personality of Lebanese descent. He founded the popular American Top 40 franchise in 1970, hosting it from 1970 to 1988 and then from 1998 to 2004. Between 1989 to 1998, he was the host of Casey’s Top 40, Casey’s Hot 20, and Casey’s Countdown. He currently hosts four weekly syndicated radio programs based on the American Top 40 franchise: American Top 20 with Casey Kasem, American Top 10 with Casey Kasem, Casey Kasem’s American Top 40: The 70s, and Casey Kasem’s American Top 40: The 80s. The later two are replays of AT40 shows from the respective decades.
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