Jazz Articles about Rahim Alhaj

About Rahim Alhaj

Album Review

With six albums under his belt since he arrived in the US in 2000--two of them, Friendship (Fast Horse, 2006) and When The Soul Is Settled (Smithsonian Folkways, 2007), Grammy nominees--Iraqi oudist Rahim Alhaj is settling into his new homeland with aplomb. Four of the discs have been virtuoso expositions of traditional Iraqi music. But on two more, Alhaj has engaged with other cultures: Friendship was made with a classical string quartet, and Ancient Sounds (UR, 2009) with Indian sarod ...

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Music and the Creative Spirit

Rahim Alhaj: Iraqi Music in a Time of War

by Lloyd N. Peterson Jr.
March 5, 2009

For a period of five centuries (750 - 1253), Baghdad was the music capital of the world. A music of elaborate ornamentations and modal rhythms that were rich, poetic and culturally beautiful. A music derived from the depths of ancient philosophies. There is even a belief that this is where melody was born, but now it lies in ruins with its culture and future in question.From out of that culture is one of Iraq's greatest oud masters and ...