Alwan For the Arts

Invites you

Saturday, November 11, 2006, 9:00 PM $15 ($10 for students with valid ID)

To a rare solo performance by

NAJEEB SHAHEEN

The Art of The Arab Oud

Najeeb Shaheen

Born in Tarsheeha and schooled in Haifa, Najeeb started playing the oud at a tender age. His father, the late Hikmat Shaheen, was an accomplished oud player, singer, and music teacher. His grandfather was cantor at the local church. After the 1967 war, Najeeb immigrated to the United States where he attended college. For decades, he has been performing nationally and internationally. He also makes and restores ouds.

The Music In the midst of all the dazzling innovations of great players of the oud, Najeeb remains one of the few who understand the instrument really well. Although he has his own style, his playing is still reminiscent of an old taste and sound. His nuanced improvisations and genuine sound evoke al-Qasabji and other great players and are so steeped in the maqam that the listeners are bound to get into the state of Tarab, the cathartic feeling one gets from great music.

The Oud Sultaan al-'alaat, the king of instruments, the oud remains the central instrument of Arab music. Used in several musical traditions, and claimed to have had its origins in various parts of the Middle East thousands of years ago, the oud has evolved through the efforts of great musicians and luthiers, such as Ibrahim and Ishaq Al-Mawsili, Zamzam, and Ziryab, and crossed over to Al-Andalus, Moorish Spain, to beget the European lute in its many variations. Through the work of recent great musicians such as Charif Haidar, Jamil and Munir Bashir, Mohamed Al-Qasabji, Ryad Sunbati, Naseer Shamma, Ali Sriti, Said Chraibi, Simon Shaheen and Anouar Brahem, the oud became a prominent solo instrument, after being limited to composers and the accompaniment of singers.

Last updated: 2007-09-20 15:48:16