Kinan Azmeh: Live In Berlin, Rooted In Damascus

Today, the Spotlight shines on clarinetist and composer Kinan Azmeh.

Earlier this year, Kinan released Live in Berlin (Dreyer Gaido, 2025), his fourteenth album with his CityBand quartet. The album captures music he wrote during Syria's 2011 uprising—pieces that carry the weight of watching your homeland torn apart from thousands of miles away. Born in Damascus and now based in Brooklyn, Kinan has spent decades crossing the world with his clarinet, performing with Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble, the New York Philharmonic, and countless others.

What makes this release particularly powerful is its timing. As Syrians celebrate newfound freedom after years of struggle, Kinan's music—born from grief and anger—now carries notes of hope. We spoke about these deeply personal compositions and how his twenty-year collaboration with CityBand has evolved into music that encompasses classical, jazz, and Arabic influences.

A technical note: Kinan joined me from Beirut, Lebanon, and although I couldn't tell while we were recording, I later discovered that our internet connection was not always stable. There are some dropouts and garbles in this episode that we have done our best to clean up; however, even with those, we thought this conversation was worth sharing with you. I know you will agree.