Search - Anouar Brahem :: Khomsa

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Chris Juergens | Portland, OR, USA | 07/04/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Even if you're familiar with Brahem's exquisite mastery of the oud AND his proclivity for mixing it up with the likes of John Surman, Zakir Hussein or Jan Garberek, you'll still be amazed & astonished to hear Khomsa.This cd combines Brahem's oud with accordion, piano, synth, sax, violin, bass & drums for a collection of beautiful compositions Brahem wrote for Tunisian theater & cinema during the '80's & '90's. It's suprising how well the various instrumental combinations work. On Khomsa Brahem is interested in the composition foremost, and often the oud takes a back seat for long stretches of music, which I intially found disconcerting (after all I'd picked up the cd to hear more from my fave oudist)but the music won me over, and now I can't find a duff moment on this disc-start to finish."

Perfect fusion

L. C. Flores | Munich, Germany | 08/09/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Most of Brahem's followers know him for his mastery in the oud. This time, his compositions include western instruments such as accordion and piano. There is also a delicious jazzy sound in this album, such as the track with the same name: Khomsa.



Why the name Khomsa? It means protection. The historic origin of this word comes from the ancient Egypt, by the time the Jews were living on that land. Moses ordered to paint a hand with sheep blood outside of every jewish door to get protected from the prophetic guardians. This signal is called Khomsa.



At the beginning of this album, the first impression is the feeling of trying something new, like a new and spicy meal which you can separate in your mouth the different tastes to just turn it into one big and delicious meal. You would find very peaceful tracks, such as L'infini Jour/L'infini Bleu or Suffle un Vent de Sable, as well as those you would like to repeat the listening: Khomsa, Seule, Nouvelle Vague, among others.



Highly recommended for those ears who like experimentation.

"

Brilliant combination

Savas Cetinkaya | izmir/ turkey | 10/06/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well, brilliant combination of east and west, you can find yourself flying over the deserts when you are listening to the smooth sound of oud. I advise "Barzakh" as well!"