Maya Youssef

Maya Youssef is a multi-award winning musician and composer from Syria. She is hailed as 'queen of the qanun,' the 78-stringed Middle Eastern plucked zither. Maya's intense and thoughtful music is rooted in the Arabic classical tradition but forges pathways into Western classical and contemporary styles. It explores the emotional and healing qualities of music. The 'Finding Home' is a journey through memories and the essence of home both within and without in the search of that place of peace, comfort, and healing which manifests in everyone in a unique way.

Dhafer Youssef & Wolfgang Muthspiel - Glow (2007) {Material Records MRE 019-2}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 251 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 116 Mb
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© 2007 Material Records | MRE 019-2
Jazz / World Jazz / Post Bop / Ethnic Jazz / Worldbeat

Although it's a dual-leader album, in which oud player Dhafer Youssef's performance is at least as important as that of guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel, one of Glow's chief causes for celebration is Muthspiel's on-form presence. After releasing the shimmeringly beautiful Bright Side (Material Records, 2006)—a little-known masterpiece which may yet take its place alongside such jazz guitar iconographs as Johnny Smith's Moonlight In Vermont (Roulette, 1953, reissued 2004) and Wes Montgomery's Incredible Jazz Guitar (Riverside, 1960)—Muthspiel's project with drummer Brian Blade, Friendly Travelers (Material Records, 2007), was a disappointment, interesting in conception but not entirely convincing in execution.

Sir Karl Jenkins is one of the most performed living composers in the world. The release of Karl’s new album Miserere: Songs Of Mercy And Redemption, on 11 October, will be followed by his 75th birthday concert at the Royal Albert Hall on 13 October. His new choral masterpiece Miserere is dedicated to all who have suffered or perished during the conflicts in the Middle East over the last 70 years. Karl was motivated by the desperate situation for the millions of people displaced and impacted by the cruel effects of war and hoped the healing and uniting powers of music could be used to bring together people from different religions.