Syrian born musician, Maya Youssef is visiting Belfast next month for a wonderful night of mesmerising Arabic music with influences of jazz, Western classical and Latin styles.
Maya Youssef, known as the ‘queen of the qanun’, a 78-stringed Middle Eastern plucked zither, will be accompanied by Elizabeth Nott on percussion and Ben Smith on piano and keyboards.
This event is hosted by Yallaa, a non-profit organisation based in Northern Ireland in collaboration with The Crescent Arts Centre in South Belfast.
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Yallaa means "let's go" in Arabic and the organisation promotes Arab culture and heritage in Northern Ireland, breaking down barriers through art, music and food.
As part of ongoing arts and cultural projects on behalf of the Arab communities in Northern Ireland, Yallaa is honoured to welcome the globally renowned and award-winning qanun player and composer, to our shores.
Born in Damascus, as a result of the war in her home country Maya arrived in the UK in 2012 and since then, she has pushed the boundaries of the qanun (a 78 stringed plucked zither traditionally played by men) and has performed at the South Bank, BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, The Barbican, Shakespeare’s Globe and WOMAD Festival.
Maya has collaborated with Damon Albarn (Blur/Gorillaz) and recorded for ‘The Beatles & India' documentary in Abbey Road Studios. Her debut album, Syrian Dreams (a prayer for peace), was produced by the esteemed Joe Boyd (Nick Drake et al) and released in 2017 to critical acclaim. This led to many UK and international sold-out concerts.
Alongside the composition and performance aspects of her career, Maya is also a consummate and skilled educator, leading her own online qanun academy with students all over the world, contributing to a wide variety of learning and participation opportunities through talks, lectures workshops and broadcasts.
Maya’s music explores the emotional and healing qualities of music. For her, the act of playing music is the opposite of death and destruction; it is a life- and hope-affirming act and an antidote to what is happening, not only in Syria, but in the whole world.
Maya's debut performance in Northern Ireland takes place at the Crescent Arts Centre on Friday 11 November at 7pm. You'll find tickets here.
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