Talks & Entertainment

Listen to the Aga Khan Master Musicians

Basel Rajoub, saxophone and clarinet
Feras Charestan, qanun
Yurdal Tokcan, oud
Abbos Kosimov, drum
Vincent Peirani, accordion
Vincent Ségal, cello

Washington Performing Arts presents an evening where the musical worlds of Central Asia, China, the Middle East, and contemporary Europe meet in striking and unexpected harmony. Five performers from the Aga Khan Master Musicians—an artistic collective dedicated to living musical traditions—are joined by celebrated French artists Vincent Peirani and Vincent Ségal for a concert that is wholly its own.

Syrian-born Basel Rajoub has reimagined an entirely new vocabulary for the saxophone; his compatriot Feras Charestan commands the qanun, the shimmering Middle Eastern plucked zither. Turkish oud master Yurdal Tokcan and Uzbek percussionist Abbos Kosimov, a virtuoso on the doira frame drum, complete the collective’s lineup. They are joined by Vincent Peirani, award-winning accordionist, singer, and composer whose work spans jazz, contemporary music, and improvisation, and by cellist and bassist Vincent Ségal, whose collaborators have included Sting, Cesaria Evora, and Elvis Costello. Seven distinct voices in one extraordinary evening.

Photos courtesy of AKMP, Sebastian Schutyser, and Stan Augris