Amir ElSaffar’s Two Rivers at Jazz on Vine at Painted Bride Art Center

Travel to the outer reaches of jazz with Iraqi-American recording artist Amir ElSaffar when he returns to the Bride with his most recent project, “Two Rivers.” Trumpeter, santoor player, vocalist, and composer, ElSaffar’s depth of emotion and authenticity orchestrates a “meeting of the music” between maqam--- a traditional Middle Eastern melodic form and jazz. Leading his six-piece ensemble including Rudresh Mahanthappa and Nasheet Waits, ElSaffar creates a seamlessly woven soundscape for the virgin ear to explore. This hypnotic carpet ride is sure to open heart and mind to new possibilities within the expanding world of jazz music culture. ...

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Travel to the outer reaches of jazz with Iraqi-American recording artist Amir ElSaffar when he returns to the Bride with his most recent project, “Two Rivers.” Trumpeter, santoor player, vocalist, and composer, ElSaffar’s depth of emotion and authenticity orchestrates a “meeting of the music” between maqam--- a traditional Middle Eastern melodic form and jazz. Leading his six-piece ensemble including Rudresh Mahanthappa and Nasheet Waits, ElSaffar creates a seamlessly woven soundscape for the virgin ear to explore. This hypnotic carpet ride is sure to open heart and mind to new possibilities within the expanding world of jazz music culture.

The ensemble consists of: Amir ElSaffar on trumpet, santoor and vocal; Rudresh Mahanthappa on alto saxophone; Zaafer Tawil on violin, oud and percussion; Tareq Abboushi on buzuq; Carlo DeRosa on bass; and Nasheet Waits on drums.
Two Rivers by Amir ElSaffar has been made possible with support from Chamber Music America’s 2009 New Jazz Works: Commissioning and Ensemble Development program funded through the generosity of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

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