Naseer Shamma was born in 1963 in Kut, a village on the Tigris River in Iraq. He began studying the ud at the age of…
Artist Profiles: Naseer Shamma
Tag: Arabic music
Artist Profiles: Kazem Al-Saher
Iraqi singer Kazem Al-Saher (also spelled Al-Sahir) began composing at the age of 12, reaching into classical forms and themes. Programmers at Iraqi television recognized…
Artist Profiles: Omar Bashir
Omar Bashir carries on the tradition of his famed father, Munir Bashir, the preeminent ‘ud (lute) player and one of the world’s most esteemed cultural…
Artist Profiles: Sawt El Atlas
Sawt El Atlas (Voices of the Atlas) was fronted by the warm voices of singers Kamel and Mounir. The ten-piece band combined Middle Eastern, rai,…
Rise of the Shamstep
47Soul – Balfron Promise (Cooking Vinyl, 2018) Balfron Promise is an album by 47Soul, a shamstep band that has been getting a lot of attention…
Fascinating Ud and Santur Encounters
Rahim AlHaj Trio – One Sky (Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, 2018) Ud virtuoso Rahim AlHaj presents a new set of works in trio format. His colleagues…
Deeply Mesmerizing Ud
Smadj – Solotronic (Whirling Wolf, 2017) Solotronic is the new solo album by Smadj (Jean-Pierre Smadja), a French-Tunisian artist who has taken the ud (Arabic…
Artist Profiles: Waed Bouhassoune
Syrian singer and ‘ud player Waed Bouhassoune was born in 1979. She has a voice of such quality that is rarely encountered one of the…
Syrian Kanun Dreams
Maya Youssef - Syrian Dreams (Harmonia Mundi, 2017) Syrian Dreams brings together Arabic and western classical music traditions as well as other influences like…
Artist Profiles: Sabah Fakhri
Sabah Fakhri is one of the foremost master vocalists of the Arab world. He was born in Aleppo, Syria in 1933. His talent was recognized…