Duke Ellington’s “Caravan” is possibly the most famous Arabic jazz recording in the world. Gorgeously exotic, covered by dozens of jazz giants and re-recorded over 350 times by his enigmatic orchestra, it burst on the scene in 1936! Surely some Arabic-infused jazz has emerged in the interim to overtake this faux-oriental classic?
Jazz in the Middle East
A rising generation of musicians are combining classical Arabic melodies with contemporary jazz, creating sublimely new sounds that mix controlled techniques (rooted in thousand-year-old traditions) with the spontaneity of improv. Airplanes and the internet enable modern masters to meet and merge with musicians around the globe, freely swapping instruments and styles to create a new playlist that is familiar, yet surprisingly fresh.
How best to place new Arabic bop on the world music radar? Jazz for Syria, an international event raising support for Syrian refugees, takes place on UNESCO’s International Jazz Day on Wednesday, 30th April with three simultaneous concerts taking place in Beirut, Amman and The Hague. The scenes will connect via internet broadcast, allowing virtual interaction by jazz fans around the world.
The shows’ message is one of reconciliation and peace through music, but each concert has its own agenda. The Lebanese program features well-known Syrian and Lebanese bands like Raed El Khazen Trio, Fatet Le3bet, Tanjaret Daghet, Mabrad and Hani Sawah. Syrian children from Lebanon’s Shatila refugee camp will step onto the Beirut stage and perform music created during workshops held by the Hani Sawah team.
The Netherlands concert aims to raise funds to buy the kids new musical instruments. It features established Dutch artists such as Jan Akkerman, Tony Overwater, Dick de Graaf and Freek de Jonge, all of whom have played in Syria.
Amman’s concert includes children from Zaatari refugee camp who participated in a week-long music workshop held by SYRIOUS Mission (www.syriousmission.org), an initiative that conducts music workshops in Jordan’s camps and host communities. Created in 2013 by Dutch composer Merlijn Twaalfhoven, and working without conventional funding, they organize training for local musicians who then work with refugees on a wide array of musical programs.
Jordan’s concert also kicks off the month-long AmmanJazzFestival 2014, which features 65 musicians, 16 bands, and over 30 performances from Italy, Spain, Syria, Germany, Jordan, Holland, Armenia, Japan and Egypt.
International Jazz Day is a yearly event organized by UNESCO to celebrate “the virtues of jazz as an educational tool, and a force for peace, unity, dialogue and enhanced cooperation among people.”
Take a hip n happy voyage into the Middle East’s take on new world jazz - (its silver lining is a charitable heart of gold!) and have your jazz hands at the ready! Play that funky music Arab boy! Meet the Middle East's grooviest jazz artists and get ready to surf n swing your way through our smooth selection!
