Ancient musical traditions from the Middle East and Balkans are blended with jazz and contemporary improvised music through a Western frame of mind.
Anatolian Alchemy is the second album by Dutch based Arifa, since the founding three years ago have played in 5 continents. Arifa's debut album 'Beyond Babylon' received five star reviews and was highly acclaimed internationally. 
Arifa's secret is the creative chemistry between its four members. Coming from Romania, Turkey, the Netherlands and Germany their music is just as diverse as their origins, moving from traditional Turkish and Balkan sounds to jazz and classical music.

Queen Of Carthage

MODERN BALKAN JAZZ ORCHESTRA
ALEX SIMU (Romania) - band leader/conductor/ arranger 
BORISLAV PETROV (Bulgaria) - drums/co-leader 
VANIA VALKOVA (Bulgaria) - vocals/gadulka  
ELENA EKICHINA (Russia) - flutes/vocals 

trumpets: 
TOBIAS REISACHER (Germany) - lead trumpet/flugel horn 
JAN DEKKER (Holland) -trumpet/flugel horn 
WIEBKE PAHRMANN (Germany) - trumpet/fflugel horn 
DOLAN JONES(UK) - trumpet/flugel horn 
COOS ZWAGERMAN (Holland)- trumpet/flugel horn 

saxophones: 
FLORIS VAN DER VLUGHT (Holland)- alto/soprano 
sax/flute/clarinet 
MAARTEN HOGENHUIS (Holland) - alto sax/soprano sax/flute 
JARED WELSH (Canada) - tenor sax/flute 
PAWAN BENJAMIN (USA) - tenor sax/flute 
TINI THOMSEN (Germany) - baritone sax/bass clarinet 

trombones:
MICHAEL RORBY (Sweden) - lead trombone 
JOS VAN DEN HEUVEL (Holland) - trombone 
NATHANIEL ADKINS (USA) - trombone 
JULIANE GRALLE (Germany) - bass trombone 

rhythm section:
TONY ROE (Holland) - piano 
SYBEREN VAN MUNSTER (Holland) - guitar 
MACEJ DOMARADZKI (Poland) - double bass 

DIMITAR LIOLEV (Bulgaria) - alto sax 

LEX TANGER (Netherlands) - studio recording, mixing and mastering 

Primăvara - Springtime

----------------Arifa Quartet----------------
Franz von Chossy (Germany) piano 
Michalis Cholevas (Greece) tarhu 
Alex Simu (Romania) bass clarinet 
Sjahin During (Turkey/Nederlands) percussion set


Music by Alex Simu 
Audio recording by Marc Schots
24 feb 2014 at Beauforthuis in the Netherlands
Film & editing by Jonathan Kuijs

Contact: Mundus productions - www.arifamusic.com

ARIFA SECRET POETRY

ARIFA & the VOICES from the EAST
Live at the Bimhuis Amsterdam
Meng Xiaoxu -- erhu & vocals (China)
Niusha Barimani -- kamanche & vocals (Iran)
Vanya Valkova -- gadulka & vocals (Bulgaria) 

Arifa :
Franz von Chossy (Germany) piano 
Michalis Cholevas (Greece) tarhu 
Alex Simu (Romania) clarinet & live laptop
Sjahin During (Turkey/Nederlands) percussion set



Audio recording by Marc Schots

Contact: Mundus productions - www.arifamusic.com

JADE GARDEN Arifa and Voices vrom the East Live At The Bimhuis Amsterdam

Live in concert on 6 of July 2014 at 20:00 Main stage in Piața George Enescu at Bucharest Jazz Festival in Romania.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1443901979191664/

"A reflection of the present, a fragrance of the past and a glance to the future.
There are no rules, there are no boundaries, there is only love for music and urge to create and to share. Innovation and heritage go hand in hand to shape the sounds and to guarantee to the audience a unique experience." 
Alex Simu - tenor clarinet & tenor saxophone (Romania)
Franz Von Chossy - piano (Germany)
Cord Heineking - double bass (Germany)
Kristijan Krajnčan - drums & cello (Slovenia)

"Echoes of Bucharest" Alex Simu Quartet live in Amsterdam at Bethany's Jazz Club

Arrangement of a traditional Romanian folk song. Playing the Modern Balkan Jazz Orchestra led by Alex Simu
Piano solo: Tony Roe
Tenor solo: Jared Welsh

5 Jiana

Traditional Persian lullaby arranged by Alex Simu for Afro Anatolian Tales recorded live in Teheran

<a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lalaee/id349775302?i=349775507&uo=4" target="itunes_store">Lalaee - Live In Teheran</a>

Lalaee fragement

"Cati" fragment from the composition and arrangement dedicated to my grandmother Caterina. Performing: Stage Band Groningen lead by Joroen Rol, recorded in 2007 live at my bachelor final recital.


Cati fragment

ARIFA & the VOICES from the EAST
"Live at Bimhuis Amsterdam"
Album teaser

Xiaoxu Meng -- erhu & vocals (China)
Niusha Barimani -- kamanche & vocals (Iran)
Vanya Valkova -- gadulka & vocals (Bulgaria) 

Arifa :
Franz von Chossy (Germany) piano 
Michalis Cholevas (Greece) tarhu 
Alex Simu (Romania) tenor clarinet, bass clarinet
Sjahin During (Turkey/Nederlands) percussion set


Music by Franz von Chossy & Alex Simu 
Audio recording by Marc Schots

Contact: Mundus productions - www.arifamusic.com


ARIFA & the VOICES from the EAST album teaser

Alex Simu Quintet live at the Bimhuis Amsterdam
ECHOES OF BUCHAREST
"Armenian Street"

Alex Simu – clarinets (Romania)
Franz von Chossy – piano (Germany)
George Dumitriu – violin/viola/guitar (Romania)
Jörg Brinkmann – cello (Germany)
Kristijan Krajnčan – drums/cello (Slovenia)


Marc Schots - live sound and live recording 
Ivana Dukic - graphic design
Raluca Baicu - production manager

Filming crew:
Corneliu Ganea
John Aponno
Joao M B Costa


The Armenian Street, Bucharest
At the heart of the city, Bucharest, there is a street with a history of itself. A place where culture, religion, spirituality, breath-taking stories, beautiful architecture, and people who changed history come together. The inspirational aura of the street was given by the Armenian people and their culture – a subtle, yet significant part of the heritage of Bucharest. This is how my story with the Armenian street begins, strengthen by the love for the Armenian culture.

It all connected onto a much deeper and personal level when I started playing saxophone. The trigger produced when I heard Garbis Dedeian playing a tribute concert to John Coltrane, back in 1999. Garbis and his brother Capril, are two very important figures of the Romanian jazz scene. Only 18 years old, I was spending my time going to Garbis’ concerts, and slowly, as the months where passing by, I was able to sit in with his band and learn the magic of playing jazz music. At the time, I was told he is Armenian. However, even though late ’90s, the echoes of the communism era where still very strong, resonating in the existence of the people and inspiring fear to anyone who would talk of any other ethnic origins than Romanian. This was an eye-opening moment, and the start of many discoveries. I explored the drawings of Cik Damadian, the paintings of Theodor Aman, the books of Varujan Vosganian, and much more that was yet to come.

Studying in the Netherlands later on was very resourceful: I had access to internet and the great public library of Amsterdam; I started listening to Armenian music of all sorts, reading about the history, the amazing and unique music system, and how it all enriched the culture of the Ottoman Empire and all the surrounding lands. I had Duduk lessons with Gevorg Dabaghian, an experience towards understanding how love for the music is an important element in creating a beautiful sound – if not played with care, the Duduk sounds very unpleasant. This entire journey became even more intense when I heard and met Tigran Hamasyan, the Armenian jazz pianist, who introduced a new world of contemporary sounds.
 When traveling in faraway corners of the world, people would ask me where am I from, and I would answer that I am Romanian. Then they would say, Armenian? And I would answer, well, no, Romanian. My answer would then create confusion. Perhaps due to my strange accent or maybe because those people never heard of Romania. This sometimes made me think for a second, maybe I am Armenian, or Aromanian, or meant-to-be Romanian.  Now, looking back on the times I occasionally walked on the Armenian Street in Bucharest, I wonder, how could I have known this street’s history goes so far, way beyond my imagination? I wrote this composition to express my gratitude towards the beautiful Armenian heritage, and to send out an invitation to everyone to visit Bucharest and take a walk down the Armenian street. It is an experience of understanding and reflection upon how much we can benefit from living together, from sharing and learning from each other.

Alex Simu Quintet Armenian Street Live at the Bimhuis Amsterdam

We decided to let trust and inner silence guide us. As a spontaneous or intimate conversation between good friends unfolds, its true meaning and value always comes afterwards.

Closer To The Stars

02 - The Pilgrim

The Sound of Now - Live in Amsterdam
Alex Simu - Contrabass clarinet
George Dumitriu - Viola

Music is the instrument. The world is the stage. Life is our score.
Sound of now strives on delivering in the present, an instant perspective of their music to the audience, through infusing a strong dosage of improvisa- tion. Gentle rhythms, bass clarinet lines, viola textures, supported by sparse guitar chords, all embellished with electronica and a touch of ancient eastern folklore.
The two Romanian-Amsterdam based musicians, skilled both in poly-instrumental playing as well as computer live electronica, have worked together for more than 15 years. A cinematic panorama comes from a thorough experience in soundtrack composition for an array of internationally acclaimed films.

The sound of now Live in  Amsterdam

The Sound of Now Live in Berlin

Sound of Now Live in Berlin Lost at the Pizz.

"Edessa" is a beautiful composition of Mehmet Polat, played by Arifa.
It belongs to "Anatolian Alchemy" and due to limited time on the disc we had to make it a bonus track.
The songs presents the Anatolian and Balkan heritage of the band


Alex Simu (Romania) Bb Clarinet, with FP barrel and ligature, and custom Pomarico Crystal mouthpiece.
Mehmet Polat  (Turkey) ud & vocals  
Franz von Chossy  (Germany) piano   
Sjahin During (Turkey/Holland) Afro Anatolian percussion

Edessa

Composed with George Dumitriu on violins for the Barefoot college documentary 
Playing the G Girnata clarinet with custom Pomarico crystal mouthpiece.

At the limit

Duo piano & tenor sax 
Alex Simu
Folkert Oosting
Recorded at René van Beeck piano studio

The wanderer

Alex Simu is an award-winning, internationally acclaimed clarinetist, saxophonist, and composer. Born in Romania, Simu followed a music education from a young age. In pursue of an international music career, he moved to the Netherlands at age 22, where he began his studies at the Prins Claus Conservatory in Groningen, obtaining a Bachelors degree in Jazz Saxophone, followed by a Masters degree from the Amsterdam Conservatory. In 2007 he received an HSP Huygens scholarship to study at the Manhattan School of Music in New York. In 2008 he was awarded the First Prize of the Utrecht Holland Casino Jazz Contest. The same year he won first prize of the Dutch Jazz Competition at the North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam, and in 2009 was awarded with the EBU jazz scholarship, and became a member of the European Jazz Orchestra for the project Swinging Europe lead by Peter Herbolzheimer.  After completing his studies, Alex Simu co-founded the Dutch-based quartet Arifa. Their debut album Beyond Babylon was released in 2010, followed by Anatolian Alchemy in 2012. Both albums were awarded the Best World Music Release of the year in the Netherlands, and distinguished with 5 stars by various publications. In 2017, Alex Simu released Echoes of Bucharest, his debut album as a band leader together with his quintet. The release at Bimhuis in Amsterdam was highly received by the national press:
 “Adventurous and stunningly beautiful. How much it was shared with the audience was evident from the daunting discharge after the end of the first set: an applause eruption that lasted so long that it seemed almost as if the final was reached." – Ton Maas, MixedWorldMusic  “Alex Simu shows his versatility and sense of beauty by playing clarinet in a style that unites his native city of Bucharest and his current city of Amsterdam. From a completely integral attitude, the quintet made the Balkan songs with their melancholy and beautiful melodies. Amsterdam seemed a little like Bucharest tonight." – Het Parool ****  Also a film music composer, Alex Simu has worked since 2010 on a great number of award-winning international film productions. In 2016, he was awarded with the Golden Calf  by the Dutch Film Academy for the Best Music of Beyond Sleep.  Since 2015, Simu is Head and Professor of clarinet within the jazz and world music departments of the Codarts Conservatory in Rotterdam. He is active in the field of organology and clarinet synthesis, and has innovated the tenor clarinet, as well as brought into contemporary use the alto clarinet, clarinet d’amour, and the bass clarinet d’amour.  Active on the jazz and world music scene since 1999, Alex Simu performed and toured professionally in 41 countries over 5 continents, and shared the stage with important figures such as Alvin Queen, Brian Lynch, Benny Golson, Bennie Wallace, Peter Herbolzheimer, Mari Boine, Jorge Reyes, Naseer Shamma, Ghalia Benali, Aynur Dogan, Arto Tuncboyaciyan, and many others.

Popular tracks by Alex Simu