Director
Torsten Schütte

Programme
The Lewinsky March
Business as Usual
Fraises et crème fraîche
Got to Go Home
Oum said
Malrese Chicken Farm
Ma muse m'amuse
Pont Neuf

Performers
Rabih Abou-Khalil (oud, composition), Eddie Allen (trumpet), Dave Ballou (trumpet), Gabriele Mirabassi (clarinet), Antonio Hart (alto saxophone), Ellery Eskelin (tenor saxophone), Tom Varner (french horn), Dave Bargeron, (euphonium), Michel Godard (tuba), Vincent Courtois (cello), Jarrod Cagwin (drums), Nabil Khaiat (mizhar, riq)


The music of Rabih Abou-Khalil transcends the definitions of Arabic traditions, American Jazz and European classical music, while still rooted in all of these. Since his first recordings in the early 1980s, the Lebanese composer and oud player has virtually created a new genre.

Two years after the multi-award winning Yara, his new album Cactus of Knowledge - published last year and seen at the South Bank in May 2002 as part of his debut UK tour - features a high voltage line-up with no less than eight horn players. He has incorporated six American jazz musicians into an intercontinental 'big band' and presents eight highly intricate new compositions; melding Arabic, jazz and classical elements into an exhilarating experience with constantly changing rhythms, thrilling dynamics and an endless flow of Oriental-flavoured melodies.

The line-up includes Italian Gabriele Mirabassi, one of the leading clarinet virtuosos worldwide; Michel Godard, well known for his Castel del Monte project; Dave Bargeron, an American legend since his days with Blood Sweat & Tears; French experimental cello player Vincent Courtois; young American drummer Jarrod Cagwin; and Abou-Khalil's long-time partner, Syrian percussionist Nabil Khaiat.

Recorded live and in studio during 2001 and interspersed with comments and interviews from his co-musicians, this is an unmissable chance for everybody who didn't have the chance to see him during his first UK tour this spring to catch up, and to make new acquaintance with one of today's most inventive musicians.