Rabih Abou-Khalil's ninth Enja release features one of his most expansive lineups to date -- 12 pieces in all, including oud, brass, woodwinds, cello, and percussion. It's quite a departure from 1999's austere Yara. Here the tempos are bright, the unison lines darting and difficult, the improv heated, the tonal combinations ever-changing. Heavy-hitting jazzers dominate the band roster, including Dave Ballou and Eddie Allen on trumpets, Tom Varner on French horn, Dave Bargeron on euphonium, Antonio Hart on alto sax, and Ellery Eskelin on tenor sax. Gabriele Mirabassi's clarinet gives the music an almost klezmer-like sound at times (a tantalizing instance of Jewish-Arab reconciliation). The gorgeous booklet includes a prose poem by Gamal Ghitany (printed in English, French, and Arabic), as well as a series of campy band portraits and a full transcription of track number five, "Oum Saïd." Looking over the score, one gets some sense of the rhythmic complexity Abou-Khalil is dealing with (try counting in 6+5+5+3/16, for instance). ~ David R. Adler, All Music Guide
Dave Bargeron (Euphonium), Rabih Abou-Khalil (Oud), Walter Quintus (Producer), Vincent Courtois (Cello), Christian Gunther (Cover Design), Nabil Khaiat (Frame Drum), Bardo Kox (Engineer), Gabriele Mirabassi (Clarinet), Rabih Abou-Khalil (Audio Production), Eddie Allen (Trumpet), Michel Godard (Tuba), Rabih Abou-Khalil (Producer), Walter Quintus (Engineer), Antonio Hart (Sax (Alto)), Georges Ghantous (Calligraphy), Walter Quintus (Mixing), Nabil Khaiat (Frame Drum), Matthias Winckelmann (Executive Producer), Walter Quintus (Audio Production), Ellery Eskelin (Sax (Tenor)), Tom Varner (French Horn), Rabih Abou-Khalil (Arranger), Rabih Abou-Khalil (Cover Design), Walter Quintus (Audio Engineer), Dave Ballou (Trumpet), Jarrod Cagwin (Drums), Thomas Dorn (Photography)
