ON A ROAD TRIP WITH A CLARINETIST – KINAN AZMEH PERFORMS IN ARMENIA
by Rabab ourabi
Forward Magazine
January 9, 2012
Yerevan, Armenia’s capital, is a place with an incredible history
accompanied by a landscape with innumerable archaeological sites,
ranging from the Stone Age to Medieval times. Using a music bridge
together with live illustrations to cross among cultures, saturated
with stylish rhythms, we stood breathless to the expressive Kinan
Azmeh’s clarinet accompanied by the live illustrations of Kevork Murad.
>From the first moment you meet Kinan Azmeh, catching bright eyes,
unforgettable smile, you sink into the warmth of inner beauty that
reflects his charming personality. A Syrian born artist and the first
Arab to win the first prize at the Nicolay Rubinstein international
competition in Moscow, Russia, 1997. Kinan Azmeh has been recognized
worldwide both as a soloist and a composer.
A seasoned musician At thirty-five, he has managed to create a diverse
portfolio, being one of the most promising Syrian musicians. According
to Enigma magazine: “his power lies in his hands; the hands of a
musician. they flirt wittily with the saxophone; play Mozart daintily
on a clarinet, improvising brilliantly to form dialogues that bridge
East and West.
on stage, he plays with the comfort of a seasoned performer, smiling,
embracing the crowd on the emotional journey of the notes”.
Azmeh appeared as soloist with the Bavarian radio orchestra, the West-
eastern Divan orchestra, the Kiev Camerata, the Corasara orchestra,
and the Syrian Symphonic orchestra. Kinan also shared the stage
with giants like Marcel Khalife, Daniel Barenboim, Francois Rabbath,
Solhi-al-Wadi, Manfred Leuchter, and members of the Berlin Philharmonic
orchestra. Azmeh looks to Arab musicians like Khalife and Rahbani as
role-models he can relate to. “It’s a combination of the emotional,
the intellectual and life experiences,” said Azmeh of his respect
for the two renowned musicians.
In the notes included in the new album “Complex Stories, Simple
Sounds,” Lebanese musician Marcel Khalife writes the following:
“Kinan, the music drops that were enriched with rain and longing on
the way to Aleppo made me pick the moon before it could fall into the
sea and become extinguished in a heavy blue that delights the heart.”
the recipients of Khalife’s praise are Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh
and Sri Lankan-Canadian pianist Dinuk Wijeratne, whose performances
and compositions are recorded on the album.
” His power lies in his hands; the hands of a musician. they flirt
wittily with the saxophone; playing Mozart daintily on a clarinet. ,,
His compositions include several works for solo, orchestra, and chamber
music; film, live illustration, and electronics. His discography
includes three albums with his ensemble HEWAR, several soundtracks
for film and dance, and a duo album with pianist Dinuk Wijeratne. He
serves as artistic director of the Damascus Festival Chamber Music
Ensemble, with whom he released an album of new contemporary Syrian
chamber music written especially for the ensemble by various composers
and is on the advisory board of the Nova Scotia youth orchestra.
Kinan founded with Isam Rafea- conductor of the Syrian National
Arabic Music orchestra the band “Hewar” (Dialogue), which has toured
throughout Europe, the U.S. and the Middle East. “the formula is
simple,” explains Azmeh. “We compose the first few lines and then
we improvise intuitively on them. on stage we are all part of the
dialogue. Each one of us is equally involved in adding his touch and
making it survive to the end”. Behind Azmeh’s music lies a political
and social consciousness endemic to Arabic music. Countering negative
perceptions of the Middle East can be a daunting task, but Azmeh is
enthusiastic about the challenge, “Hewar” blends the Eastern sounds
of the oud and tabla (or drums) with the deep Western sounds of the
double bass, clarinet and cello, to create Arabic music fused with
jazz, opera, folk and classical music.
Gilgamesh in Armenia on a cold winter evening in yerevan 19th of
october, a group of tourist, we were invited to attend Gilgamesh for
clarinet with Azmeh and the Syrian painter Kevork Murad.
the Epic of Gilgamesh tells the tale of King Gilgamesh, a man whose
reign encompassed what would have been modern- day Iraq some 5,000
years ago. the story brings a message of peace. “What inspired us
to do Gilgamesh is that we think it is important to preserve the
history and culture of Iraq and share it with an Armenian audience,”
Azmeh says. “Number one, we want to raise questions in terms of what
the country is about and, number two, we are bridging a gap that is
very important to bridge.”
Without knowing what to expect, we went into the auditorium. Live
drawing and visual animations by Mourad began projecting onto the
screen behind Azmeh, acting as a counterpoint to his music. As he
played, rocket grenades disappeared into clouds behind him and a
thick gray mist morphed into a surreal industrial landscape. Azmeh
mesmerized the audience with a multilayered virtual ensemble while
Mourad’s animations alternately danced and did battle across the
screen. While improvising freely in different Arabic modes on top of
his own ensemble,
he also wove in an exhilarating Syrian drumming soundtrack. Mourad
made more than 10 drawings while Azmeh played, projecting them live on
video. the most stunning moment came when the music was reaching its
climax, and Mourad’s painting turned into a brilliant, prerecorded
animation. the audience held its breath as the characters in the
painting danced, violently battled, and then made peace and walked
away hand-in-hand, while coordinating carefully with Azmeh’s music.
Azmeh and Mourad created a powerful storytelling that was magical.
Before the last note faded, the audience stood and the night that began
in silence exploded into a chorus of applause for the synthesis of
artistic traditions. the unstoppable applause brought both artists back
to the stage hand in hand to acknowledge the appreciative audience. We
left speechless, we all wanted that evening never to end.
Kinan and Syria the following night, we were invited to a jazz club,
where Kinan joined the band playing that night; he caused a sensation,
Azmeh made frequent use of the lower range of his instrument, producing
a sound at once resonant and vulnerable. the feeling that you have
is that he performs so perfectly and has no difficulties in evincing
any form of interaction with his audience.
on several numbers he slid up the register for strident, passionate
solos that were even more striking in contrast. you have to
watch him playing; he brings his heart and soul to the stage. In
describing his music Azmeh said “My musical pieces are somewhat
sequential. they illustrate to me the kind of person I’m to become,
through understanding who I was and who I now am”.
on an early morning day trip to Ararat Mountain, Kinan told me that as
much as he loves New york, he still feels his future is in Syria. He
recently bought an old Damascene house in the city of Damascus where
he plans to settle down in the future. “My real icons are the people
who are trying to make it in Syria – the people who think about
emigrating as the last option, not the first,” he says. “Music is
what I want to do and I want to do it here. If you leave, nothing
will improve. If you want your kids or grandchildren to live here –
it begins with you. this is where I feel I need to be most and this
is where I feel I am rewarded the most.”
” Azmeh: My real icons are those trying to make it in Syria, who
think about emigrating as the last option, not the first. ,,