Rabih Abou-Khalil w/Selim Kusur, Glen Velez, Setrak Sarkissian
Nafas
ECM Records (Germany) 1988
ECM 1359 (LP) Original pressing. Promotional copy
sleeve : VG+(DJS, SRW, WD, some wear on edge and corner, wrinkle.)
media : EX/EX(some slightly noises.)
This album was featured in the guidebook OBSCURE SOUND REVISED EDITION. It is a 1988 release on ECM by oud player Rabih Abou-Khalil, who hails from Beirut, Lebanon, and was active in Germany. The album features contributions from Glen Velez (frame drums), Setrak Sarkissian (darabukka), and Selim Kusur (nay, voice). It presents an exotic triangle of music where the solid beats of traditional Middle Eastern and North African percussion instruments—darabukka and frame drums—interlock with the mysterious, soaring melodies of the nay, a vertical flute from Central and West Asia, and the taut, resonant tones of the oud, a traditional Arabic string instrument. The spatial placement and balance of each part are superb, creating a vivid, raw sound that carries the feel of dry desert air. Also noteworthy is the brilliant arrangement of track B4, originally composed by Mohammad Abdul Wahab, which Jan Akkerman famously referenced in his piece “Oil in the Family.” Highly recommended.
B2: Incantation
B3: Waiting
B4: Amal Hayati