Maouzoun

Norway’s Inger Hannisdal grew up playing classical violin and a little jazz on the side before studying Arabic music at university in Lebanon. Back in Norway she teamed up with Syrian oud player Shble Saleem who arrived in Oslo in 2015 and the result is this rather lovely if sombre album of instrumental compositions and modal improvisations inspired by the Arabic music of the early 20th century, a period often referred to as Nahda, or the Arabic Renaissance. The pair cite as specific influences Egyptian oud player Mohamed el-Qasabgi and Syrian violinist Sami Shawa and the musical dialogue between their two instruments is rooted deep in the styles and techniques of Middle Eastern Arabic tradition, although on tracks such as ‘Tamayoul’ and ‘Khosh Rank’ they hint at wider influences drawn from Scandi folk music, Mediterranean sources and beyond. The baroque stylings of cellist Ellen-Martine Gismervik and the frame drum of Greek-Norwegian percussionist Marianna Sangita Angeletaki Røe lend virtuosic support.