Kinan Azmeh And CityBand take you on an exotic and emotional musical travelogue on their genre-defying album Live In Berlin — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
For his 14th album, the Syrian-born, Brooklyn-based composer and clarinetist reconvened his genre-bending quartet with guitarist Kyle Sanna, bassist Josh Myers and drummer John Hadfield. Influenced by the music of Azmeh’s homeland, Live in Berlin captures the arc of personal and collective anger, frustration, sadness and hope felt in the face of atrocities. Conceived during the 2011 Syrian uprising, the album presents six of Azmeh’s own deeply personal compositions (in addition to a piece by Sanna), all recorded in front of a live audience 10 years later on the Pierre Boulez Saal stage in Berlin.
“It moves me profoundly to be sharing this album with the world as my Syrian people are able to sing again after the long and costly struggle against tyranny and dictatorship,” says Azmeh. “This album is dedicated to all who believe that making music is also an act of freedom.”
Azmeh has gained international recognition for his spellbinding sound and distinctive compositional voice across diverse musical genres. He brings his music to all corners of the world as a soloist and commissioned composer with leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony and the Deutsches Symphony Orchestra Berlin, and as a member of the Grammy-winning Silkroad Ensemble.
Celebrating almost two decades together, Kinan Azmeh And CityBand have received praise from critics and audiences alike, for their virtuosic and high-energy performances. Reaching a balance between classical, jazz and world music, this Arab-jazz quartet has been wowing audiences worldwide. Crossing boundaries between styles and genres, between composition and improvisation, they play “music that is inspired by a multitude of traditions without being limited by any of them,” as Azmeh describes it. Azmeh’s expressive clarinet meets Sanna’s rustic guitar, soaring at times over the dynamic and volatile backdrop of Hadfield’s drums and Myers’ double bass. Live In Berlin presents the quartet at an elevated level of consciousness and artistry.
Listen to Live In Berlin below, watch the CityBand play Dance above, and join Kinan Azmeh on his website, Facebook and Twitter.
