SYRIA: East meets West at the Damascus citadel during the 4th edition of the "Jazz Lives in Syria" festival

Record ID: 279344

  • Title: SYRIA: East meets West at the Damascus citadel during the 4th edition of the "Jazz Lives in Syria" festival
  • Date: 28th August 2008
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF SYRIAN JAZZ ORCHESTRA PERFORMING
  • Embargoed: 12th September 2008 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Reuters ID: LVA5EXGLMDAYWC8Y0K58ZKTXUXC4
  • Story Text: East meets West at the Damascus Citadel during the fourth "Jazz Lives in Syria" festival, running from August 23rd to 30th with its eclectic mix of local and international acts.
    East met West at the Damascus citadel on Tuesday (August 26) with a long-awaited performance by the Syrian Jazz Orchestra, crowning the onset of the "Jazz Lives in Syria" festival, now in its fourth year.
    Providing a unique blend of jazz and Syrian musical heritage, the Syrian Jazz Orchestra has been attracting audiences since its first performance in 2005.

    "Europeans have rarely heard oriental music. There a couple of musicians who perform oriental music in Europe but when the two genres come together, the character of each type of music (jazz and oriental) becomes more prominent. I've noticed that from one year of the festival to the next, the more Europeans attend, the more their appreciation for oriental music grows," said singer Houry Dora Apartian-Friedle.
    Born of a series of workshops that were set up by the Swiss Embassy in Syria ahead of the first "Jazz Lives" event four years ago, the Syrian Jazz Orchestra has since established itself as a true Arab "Big Band" -- in the fashion of the Big Bands that were so popular in the 1930s and 1940s in the United States.
    The Syrian Jazz Orchestra's performance this year features new arrangements of classical musical pieces, Syrian "muwashahhat" by Adnan Abou El Shamat and Omar Batsch, an especially commissioned classical jazz song by Dutch artist Gerard Kleijn and a collaboration with the Armenian Big Band.

    "It is great when you combine it with other ethnic music from the Middle East or wherever from," Kleijn told Reuters.
    New York-based Syrian video artist and live illustrator Kevork Murad also contributed to the visual aspects of the performance.
    Other featured local acts include the Syrian group Hewar, the Damascus International Jazz Quintet and the Amr Hammoud Band which will be sharing the stage with international jazz celebrities Eric Truffaz, Alain Caron, Bert Joris, Frank Calberg, Wayne Krantz, David Binney, Kenny Wheeler and Jan Akkerman among others.
    The line up also includes artists who have successfully blended their musical heritage with the jazz tradition from countries like Brazil, Turkey, Armenia, Norway, France and India.
    This year's event is organised by the Syria Trust for Development chaired by Syrian First Lady Asmaa al-Asad -- in cooperation with the Swiss embassy. Over sixty international acts will be taking part.
    In addition to developing the arts in Syria more generally, the Trust hopes to foster cooperation between Syrian and international jazz artists through live concerts and workshops.

    "Jazz Lives in Syria" 2008 is touring four cities from August 23rd to 30th, including: Damascus, Aleppo, Tartous and Deir Ezzor.
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