Friday, February 6, 2009

Tomorrow: Iraqi Jazz Fusions

In my continuing quest for interesting (and free) events, I've come across Iraqi Jazz Fusions: Amir ElSaffar's Two Rivers at 7:30 p.m. at the Freer Gallery.

From the web site: Iraqi American jazz artist Amir ElSaffar leads this cross-cultural quintet in a performance of Two Rivers, an original work inspired by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the composer's Iraqi and American heritage, and the common ground between American jazz and Iraqi classical music. ElSaffar sets the modes of Arab music to innovative grooves, free ensemble playing, and multi-layered sound textures, resulting in a work that the BBC praised as "harrowing to absorb, full of as much beauty as pain." He performs on trumpet and santur with Rudresh Mahanthappa, saxophone; Nasheet Waits, drums; Carlo DeRosa, bass; and Zaafir Tawil, oud, violin, and dumbek.

A pre-concert gallery tour of Arts of the Islamic World will take place at 6:45 p.m.

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