Jazz Articles about Anouar Brahem

Anouar Brahem: Le Voyage de Sahar

by Nenad Georgievski
April 20, 2006

Many of ECM's standout albums are a result of rich confluences of jazz, classical and world music sensibilities. The authors of those albums have a thorough, deep knowledge and understanding of each tradition, and most of the time the intersections between the different traditions are blessed with good results.

Such is the case with Anouar Brahem. His music clearly dwells in different worlds, deeply rooted in Arabic music yet very open to influences from jazz and classical traditions, among others. ...

Anouar Brahem: Le Voyage de Sahar

by John Kelman
April 12, 2006

Anouar Brahem's last international release, Le Pas du Chat Noir (ECM, 2002), was something of a watershed for the Tunisian oudist. Earlier records like Khomsa (ECM, 1995) and Thimar (ECM, 1998) found him exploring the nexus between traditional Middle Eastern harmonies and a more open-minded improvisational approach with artists like reed player John Surman, bassists Dave Holland and Palle Danielsson, and drummer Jon Christensen. But Le Pas du Chat Noir placed a stronger emphasis on composition and influences that went ...

Anouar Brahem Trio: Le Voyage de Sahar

by Jeff Dayton-Johnson
April 3, 2006

Tunisian master Anouar Brahem plays the oud, an eleven or twelve-string lute at the center of small-group Arabic classical music; he has impressive credentials in the jazz domain, having recorded with Jan Garbarek, John Surman and David Holland. Le Voyage de Sahar is Brahem's eighth original ECM release as a leader, and his second with a trio filled out by pianist François Couturier and accordionist Jean-Louis Matinier.

On the aural evidence of this new record, Brahem is also an artist ...

Anouar Brahem: Le Pas du Chat Noir

by Sergio Masferrer
December 27, 2004

Anouar Brahem knows perfectly the formula to condense in the air the fragrance of incense, the visual impression of an orange-colored sky over the adobe terraces in Tunis, and a sea of reminiscences shaken up by his melodies. His music seems to be languid, but its lassitude takes you in, absorbs you, and softly converts any emotion that could seem instantaneous and banal unless the notes of his oud didn't float in the air.

On his seventh album recorded for ...

Anouar Brahem: Le Pas Du Chat Noir

by AAJ Staff
September 7, 2002

The outstanding clarity of Anouar Brahem's new trio record demonstrates the composer's ability to combine several cultural influences without sounding contrived or disjointed. For this project, Brahem composed 12 pieces for the most unusual combination of piano, accordion, and oud (a type of lute). The music came out of a long period of listening and composing on piano in Tunis, where Brahem found himself unable to return to his voice on the oud after an intense session for 1997's Thimar. ...

Anouar Brahem: Thimar

by Glenn Astarita
February 1, 1999

The oud is an ancient short-necked, plucked Arabic instrument. On Thimar, East meets West with oud instrumentalist Anouar Brahem along with jazz masters, saxophonist/bass clarinetist John Surman and bassist Dave Holland. The opener, “Badhra," commences with Surman's light as a feather soprano work while Holland and Brahem successively join the festivities as if they were doing one of those “let's introduce the band" exercises. “Taiwin" leans toward the Arabic end of the spectrum as Holland and Brahem perform Middle Eastern ...

Anouar Brahem: Thimar

by Larry Koenigsberg
January 1, 1999

Once again ECM expands the boundaries of jazz. This brings up the question of whether this music is jazz, and purists would argue that it's not: no blues, no standards, no drums. Why not go all the way and decry the absence of banjo and tuba? The fact is that there are elements of jazz here, including group improvisation, rhythmic propulsion, and two established jazz players, Surman and Holland. But the listener who appreciates this release will be someone who ...