Basel Rajoub is a Syrian saxophone player with a difference. Aleppo-born and Swiss-based graduate of Damascus High Institute of Music, Basel is a consummate performer, skilled improviser, and highly original composer creating new music that is rooted in a thousand-year-old tradition. Basel is known for developing oriental music for the saxophone and is dedicated to helping his audience discover contemporary expression of myriad melodic modes of Arabic music. An innovator both on stage and in the studio, Basel performs as a solo artist and a leader of the Basel Rajoub Ensemble.

“…performing on instruments that are not native to the Middle East, this artist exemplifies the talent, achievement, and breadth of a rising generation of cosmopolitan Arab musicians who combine jazz, classical music, the microtonal subtleties and myriad melodic modes of Arabic music.”

“… their music represents a sublime mix of spontaneity and control rooted in a thousand-year-old tradition of improvisation. Such music could only have emerged from artists whose own musical journeys have zigzagged back and forth between the Middle East and the West in unique ways, creating music that is at once seamless and surprising.”

Solo albums:

Khameer (Composer, arranger, lead soloist) 2010
Asia (Composer, arranger, lead soloist) 2012, 2013 (international releases)
Albums:

Asmar Ellon* (Composer, arranger, performer) 2005
Shamat (Composer, arranger, performer) 2007
Kasaed Syaseh (Composer, arranger, performer) 2012
* Asmar Ellon declared Winner, Radio Monte Carlo Moyen Orient Award 2006

Film scores:

Roubama (2012), directed by Rakan Mayassi (Jordan). Feature film selection by Locarno Film Festival, Beirut International Film Festival and London Documentary Film Festival
Bb 2012 directed by Lamis Al Mouhammad, Syria

Since its creation in 2004, Fattet Le3bet started to fuse jazz music with different sounds of oriental music: from classical to popular Arabic songs, from Assyrian to Kurdish music, from Eastern Europe to India through Turkey and Iran. In its rearrangement of oriental pieces and jazz standards, Fattet Le3bet focuses on the development of oriental solo improvisation in jazz music in a rather festive format bringing jazz music closer to the audience.
Fattet Le3bet made over a hundred concerts over the years in many cities and villages in Syria promoting fun oriental music with serious jazz arrangements. Fattet Le3bet also played in Jordan, Lebanon, Germany, and Switzerland.
This CD is made in 3 years’ time while the band while performing in many places in Syria. It is because of the genius of Nareg Abajian who managed to write specifically to this formation. 


Nareg Abajian - Piano
Khaled Omran - Bass guitar
Nizar Omran - Trumpet
Dani Shukri – Drums
Firas Hassan – Percussion
Hannibal Saad – Guitar

Guest are:

Basel Rajoub- Alto Sax
Ali Shaker- Saz
Charbel Asphahan- Tuba
Omar Harb-Bass
Feras Sharestan-Quanon

1-مو كونتشيرتو 05:18
2-ناي 04:23  
3-قفقاس 03:40
4-تقسيم بزق.01:14
5-بلا هروشة03:59
6-تقسيم ترومبيت04:06
7-ارابيا06:09
8-روندو ال04:45
9-شاف04:46
10-يا عرب الشرقية03:00
1-Mu Concerto       05:18
2-Nai                        04:23
3-Govgas                 03:40
4-Taksim Bozuq      01:14
5-Bala Harwashe    03:59
6-Taksim Trumpet   04:06
7-Arabia                    06:09
8-Rondo Al               04:45
9-Shav                      04:46
10-Ya Arab Alsharkiia    03:00

At the heart of the Trio is Silviu Ciulei, a guitar virtuoso who captures the passion of flamenco with the precision of a classical guitarist. He began classical training at an early age, soon winning prizes in national and international competitions, first in Europe and more recently in the United States. A family holiday in Spain first awakened his interest in Flamenco, and soon after, he moved to Cardiz, Andalusia--the heartland of Flamenco--and began several years of intense study. This experience led Silviu to form Tequila, the first of his Flemenco Nuevo ensembles, which gained national attention in his native Romania. Silviu is currently working towards his Phd in classical guitar performance under the tutelage of Bruce Holzman, Director of the Guitar Program at Florida State University, and competing in competitions around the U.S. 

David Cobb is the bassist for the Trio. He began his musical journey in the middle school brass section but soon was lured by the sound of strings and began teaching himself guitar and electric bass. This expanded his classical background into the American styles centered around these instruments: blues, rock, soul and jazz. David studied composition and classical guitar at the University of South Carolina and performed and recorded with numerous artists and ensembles, including J’Ouvert Steel Band, Israeli composer Ayala Asherov and P Funk keyboardist Danny Bedrosian’s bands Som’n Fierce and Secret Army. David fuses the feel of soul with a wealth of Latin American and Caribbean rhythms and the melodic sensibilities of Western Asia.

Rounding out the rhythm section, percussionist Ramin Yazdanpanah draws upon the sounds of the Outback, Silk Road and Caribbean. He plays the soulful and passionate rhythms of his Cuban-Iranian heritage on cajon, dumbek and a variety of other percussion instruments while showcasing his mastery of the didjeridoo. Ramin has performed and recorded with numerous artists in numerous musical genres, from classical, jazz and folk, to funk, Latin, and hip-hop.

The unique cultural and musical backgrounds of Silviu, David and Ramin create the high-energy and daring music of the Maharajah Flamenco Trio


Followers of Optimix