With a selection of traditional and contemporary music from the Tunisian repertoire.
1- Dhafer Youssef.
‘Diwan Of Beauty And Odd’ is the first album recorded by Tunisian composer, singer and ud player Dhafer Youssef with an ‘All Star’ formation. The album has everything this exceptional is known for: beautiful melodies, songs from the heart, contagious rhythms, outstanding craftsmanship on all instruments, both from him on the ud and vocals and his ‘all-star’ band members on the piano, double bas, drums and trumpet.
CD. ‘Diwan of Beauty & Odd’, Dhafer Youssef. Label: OKeh (2016), code: 364092.
2- Sonia M’barek.
Sonia M’barek is one of the most famous singers from Tunisia. Her music is about the Tunisian style called ‘Malouf‘ that was in public only sung by men, until Sonia M’barek started to sing it. ‘Malouf’ is a classic Arabian style of music, klassieke Arabische muziek stijl, ascetic and finely detailed with harmonized melody lines that are shared between the singer and the instruments, accompanied by little percussion. The music is focused on all aspects of vocal performances: every change in the timbre, every crescendo and diminuendo.
CD. ‘Takth’, Sonia M’barek. Label: World Network (1999), code: 32.375 (from the series TUNESIA 45).
3- Yousra Dhahbi.
Born in a family of musicians, Yousra Dhahbi enjoys a complete musical education, which leads to an international solo career. Yousra is an expert in the art of ‘maqam’, the art of Eastern modes. She also has mastered improvisation, has a knack for melodies with strictness and exemplary inspirations that exceed clichés. She learned how to play the ud and the Eastern techniques of vocals at the National Conservatoir of Tunis, which she led for a while, before she settled in Switzerland.
CD. ‘Rhapsody for Luth’, Yousra Dhahbi. Label: Institute du Monde Arabe (2004), Harmonia Mundi, ref.HM321057.
4- North African café.
Walk through the narrow alley of a North African medina, past the cafés filled with the aromatic scent of water pipes and the hummig of the local chatters around you.. The Rough Guide To ‘North African Café’ is a musical journey through the busy backwaters of Moroco, Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt, with artists of Algerian legend Maurice El Medioni after French-Tunisian ud player Smadj.
CD. ‘North African Café’. Label: The Rough Guide (2007), code RGNET1187.
5- El Kado.
Guitar player El Kado was born in France, but has a North African heritage. At a young age, he lost his heart to the rhythms of flamenco guitar and practiced his mastery of the instrument for years. In 1995, he formed the group ‘Los Bandoleros’ with two other flamenco guitarists. After that, he had a Arabic-Andalusian formations with his uncles. On this album, El Kado is accompanied by the Arabic ‘darbuka’, the ‘cajón’ from Peru, and Spanish ‘castagnetten’.
CD. ‘Arabesque’, El Kado. Label: Disques DOM (2004), code: DOM1142.
6- DuOud.
The duo DuOud is a North African sensation that mixes tradition with technology to create the fullest sound possible, just like Algerian superstar Khaled and Moroccan MoMo. DuOud consists of two ud players from Paris that combine their North African heritage with the latest Western technology. The duo DuOud consists of Jean-Pierre Smadja from Tunisia who was trained as a jazz musician and a sound technician, and Algerian born Mehdi Haddab.
CD. ‘Ping Kong’, DuOud. Label: World Village / Harmonia Mundi (209), code: wvf479025.
7- Ghalia Benali.
Ghalia Benali from Tunisia is a multi-talented woman. she is a sculptor, she writes, composes, dances, and sings. The picture she made for her album cover is one to blow up and hang on your wall. On the background are two Eastern decorated windows, with a Jeroen Bosch-like character hanging in a basket before it. The scene oozes a boundless desire for overall beauty, both aesthetically and surreal. The same wondrous atmosphere sounds through Benali’s timeless songs. With her deep, hoarse voice, she sings her own lyrics, inspired by old Sufi poets and in which the desire for the higher is the main theme.
CD. ‘Al Palna’, Ghalia Benali. Label: Zimbraz/Music&Words (2008), code: MWCD3033.
8- Anouar Breham.
‘Le Voyage de Sahar’ is an album that blends Arabic melodies with more European, impressionistic musical laws. The title track start with a lonely, swaying accordion. Then the ud starts to play a harmony, while the accordion continues to lament with long, dragging notes, subtly accentuated by the piano’s minor cords. The deep, lang bass sounds of the ud and piano create a dark, ominous atmosphere that reveals the dangers of a nightly journey through the desert.
CD. ‘Le Voyage de Sahar’, Anouar Brahem. Label: ECM Records (2006), code: EMC 1915-987 4651.
