Naïssam Jalal

A vertiginous flautist, vocalist and prolific composer, Naïssam Jalal shines through her ability to forge links between different musical cultures and aesthetic fields. Through encounters, imaginaries and memories, she presents a unique work for each new creation. She deconstructs borders and invents a singular language that invites us to open up to multiple horizons.

Naïssam Jalal has received many prestigious awards, including the Grand Prix de l’Académie Charles Cros 2017, the Victoire du Jazz (French Grammy) in 2019 (+ 3 nominations), the Prix des Musiques d’ICI 2020 and the Premier Prix Jazz at the International Songwriting Competition 2022.

Leading 4 groups, Naïssam Jalal travels the world, sharing intimate and moving experiences with her public. Over the course of her 9 albums, she has established herself as one of the leading figures on the contemporary jazz scene, unveiling a personal and vibrant musical universe that gives new meaning to the word freedom.

Naïssam Jalal was born in Paris from Syrian parents. At age 6, she enters the conservatoire to study classical flute. At age 17, she discovers improvisation and leaves the conservatoire after obtaining her certificate. The same year, the funky brass band Tarace Boulba drags her on a tour in Mali. At 19, Naïssam leaves France in search of her roots. After several months of initiation into the nay at the Great Institute of Arabic Music in Damascus, Syria, she leaves for Cairo to study with the great master violonist Abdu Dagher. In Egypt she meets Fathi Salama with whom she plays in the most prestigious theaters and participates in the creation of the groups El Dor El Awal and Bakash. Naïssam develops a very unique style between East and West.

Back in France in 2006, Naïssam begins to tour with several artists accross Europe and further. Among this artists, there are the Lebanese rapper Rayess Bek and the Egyptian oud player Hazem Shaheen. In 2009 she issues the album “ To Resistance” with her duet Noun Ya and tours in France, Syria, Japan, Lebanon, Tunisia.

Between 2010 and 2018, Naïssam has the opportunity to play with the best African musicians on the Parisian scene (Cheikh Tidiane Seck, Mamani Keita, Abdoulaye Traore, Mohamed Diaby, Hilaire Penda, Moh Kouyaté, Hervé Samb…), great names from the international jazz scene ( Hamid Drake, Michael Blake, Bojan Z, Sophia Domanchich, Claude Tchamitchian, Andy Emler, Médéric Collignon, Nelson Veras, Anne Paceo) or from the Arabic world (Noura Mint Seymali, Aziz Sahmaoui, Amazigh Kateb, Lena Shamamyan, Karim Ziad, Macadi Nahhas, Youssef Hbeish, Ahmad Alkhatib…). She plays also with many US or Arabic rap singers (Mike Ladd, Napoleon Maddox, Katibeh 5). Naïssam Jalal composes the soundtrack for four full length films.

Since 2011, she has been performing with her quintet Rhythms of Resistance on big festivals and major Venues in Europe and Africa and has been building a repertoire reflecting her free and nomadic personality. She released 2 albums with her quintet Rhythms of Resistance: Osloob Hayati (2015) and Almot Wala Almazala (2016). 

In 2018, Naïssam releases 2 albums the same year: Al Akhareen with Palestinian rap singer Osloob, and Liqaa with Egyptian Oud player Hazem Shaheen. The album of her trio Quest of the Invisible with Claude Tchamitchian at double bass, the Bresilian pianist Leonardo Montana and Hamid Drake as guest, released in 2019, won the highest french jazz Award « Victoires du Jazz 2019 ».

To mark the 10th anniversary of Rhythms of Resistance, a double album has been released in February 2021. It reveals an unsuspected aspect of Naïssam Jalal’s imagination, presenting a repertoire with two faces: a version for quintet and a version for symphony orchestra performed by the Orchestre National de Bretagne. Un Autre Monde denounces the social and ecological catastrophes of today’s world, but also points towards a world of empathy and love. It’s an album that argues for dreams and a refusal to bow our heads.

Inspired by her artistic interventions at the hospital, Naïssam Jalal has composed a repertoire of Healing Rituals. This program released on her ninth album in March 2023, in a quartet with double bassist Claude Tchamitchian, cellist Clément Petit and drummer/percussionist Zaza Desiderio, is further proof of the humanist conception of his musical creation. The album has been mentioned in the press as one of the best of 2023: The 10 best jazz albums by The Guardian, Honourable Mention by The New York City Jazz Records, Top of The World by Songlines, Best 5 jazz albums RTS, TOP 10 albums by Radio Nova.

In June 2023, Naïssam Jalal was nominated for the 4th time at the french jazz Award as « instrumental artist ».

In 2024, Naïssam Jalal presented Landscapes of Eternity, her new sextet creation based on the landscapes of North Indian classical music. She spent several months travelling around India in search of the spirit of Hindustani music. Nourished by her encounters and learning, she has composed an intimate and spiritual repertoire rooted in her tangible sensations.

Awards

- Coup de cœur from the Académie Charles Cros (2017) - Victoires du Jazz (2019)