Aga Khan Master Musicians

Performance Run Time: TBA This performance brings together five exceptional performers from the Aga Khan Master Musicians collective. Wu Man is a world-leading virtuoso on the pipa, a Chinese lute, and a passionate advocate of her country’s traditional music. Syrian-born multi-instrumentalist Basel Rajoub has developed an entirely new repertoire for the saxophone, while his compatriot Feras Charestan is a master on the qanun, a Middle Eastern plucked zither. Turkish oud master Yurdal Tokcan and Uzbek-born Abbos Kosimov, a virtuoso on the doira frame drum, complete the outstanding quintet of Aga Khan Master Musicians. They are joined by two eminent French musicians celebrated for their explorations across musical genres. Award-winning accordionist, singer, and composer Vincent Peirani has worked across jazz, contemporary music, and improvisation. Vincent Ségal is a renowned cellist and bassist who has collaborated with artists such as Sting, Cesária Évora, and Elvis Costello. All seven musicians come together to create a body of new work in which their distinct musical traditions meet, intertwine, and evolve. Inspired by the historic routes linking Asia and the Mediterranean, this cross-continental collaboration reflects a shared artistic language shaped through dialogue, exchange, and imagination. The result is a richly textured sound world — a living expression of cultural heritage reimagined by some of today’s most compelling voices. Performing Artists Feras Charestan, qanun Abbos Kosimov, doira Basel Rajoub, saxophone, duclar Yurdal Tokcan, oud Wu Man, pipa Vincent Peirani, accordion Vincent Ségal, cello About Aga Khan Master Musicians The Aga Khan Master Musicians create music inspired by their own deep roots in the cultures of the Middle East, and the Mediterranean Basin, Central Asia, and China. Brought together by the Aga Khan Music Programme to explore how musical innovation can contribute to the revitalization of cultural heritage, the Master Musicians are venerated performers and composer-arrangers who appear on the world’s most prestigious stages while also serving as preeminent teachers, mentors, and curators. Each of these exceptional artists has achieved mastery within a rigorous musical tradition defined by canonical styles, repertoires, pedagogy, and performance techniques. At the same time, they share a belief that tradition can serve as an invaluable compass for an artistic search into new forms of creativity inspired but not constrained by the past. This search has led to a strikingly original body of work composed, arranged, and performed by the Master Musicians, often joined by distinguished guests. About Wu Man Wu Man is an acclaimed performer on the pipa, a four-stringed Chinese lute with ancient roots that, due in large part to her efforts, has become a leading instrument of contemporary music in both East and West. Wu Man performs both traditional and contemporary music on the pipa, and many new works have been commissioned specially for her. She was a founding member of the Silkroad Ensemble and the Aga Khan Master Musicians, and has played an active role in cross-cultural music making. About Basel Rajoub Basel Rajoub is a saxophonist and composer-improviser whose inspirations include traditional Middle Eastern rhythms and melodies as well as jazz. Born in Aleppo, Syria, he graduated from the Damascus High Institute of Music and creates new music that brings together musicians from the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and Europe. A winner of Radio Monte Carlo’s Moyen-Orient Music Award, Basel Rajoub divides his time between performing, teaching, composing, and recording. Currently based in Geneva, Basel performs as a member of several ensembles and is the founding member of the Soriana Project. About Feras Charestan Feras Charestan is from the city of Al-Hasakeh in the northeast of Syria, and studied qanun at the High Institute of Music in Damascus. He has performed as a qanun soloist with symphony orchestras and has been a member of popular bands as well as contemporary music ensembles, creating new music rooted in Middle Eastern traditions. Feras Charestan currently lives in Stockholm, Sweden. About Abbos Kosimov Abbos Kosimov was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, into a musical family. A disciple of the honoured Uzbek doira player Tuychi Inogomov and winner of the Competition of Percussion Instruments of Central Asia and Kazakhstan, Kosimov established his own doira school in 1994 and his ensemble, Abbos, in 1998. Kosimov performs internationally with Zakir Hussain and Randy Gloss’s percussion group Hands On'Semble, and has recorded with Stevie Wonder. About Yurdal Tokcan Yurdal Tokcan is a Turkish oud player, guitarist, and composer who bridges the worlds of classical Ottoman makam, Sufi music, and contemporary cosmopolitan musical styles and genres. Born in 1966 and educated at Istanbul Technical University’s Turkish Music State Conservatory (Türk Musikisi Devlet Konservatuarı). He began his professional career as a member of the Istanbul State Turkish Music Ensemble, founded in 1987 by revered tanbur player Necdet Yaşar under the aegis of Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. In 2015, Yurdal Tokcan became the ensemble’s artistic director. Tokcan is known not only for his mastery of the oud but for his explorations of intercultural composition and performance in the domains of both “East-West” and “East-East” collaborations, in particular through his adaptation of oud technique to the fretless guitar. Of his many recordings released in Turkey, several have also been released internationally, most notably Passion (Hisleniç), an album of solo oud improvisations. About Vincent Ségal Vincent Ségal is an inspired cellist with a discography as prolific as it is eclectic; he has continued to pursue the most unexpected experiences and collaborations possible. This is evidenced by his numerous collaborations with artists from all walks of life, such as Chuck Brown, Elvis Costello, Blackalicious, Nana Vasconcelos, Brigitte Fontaine, Sting, Marianne Faithfull, Cesária Évora, and Papa Wemba. In addition to his participation as a solo cellist in numerous original film scores, Ségal has composed original music for numerous films. Always eager for new musical projects and a fervent supporter of musical fusion, Ségal continues to explore unknown territories in search of mastery of the greatest number of genres, ranging from contemporary music to electro, including jazz, improvised music, and world music. About Vincent Peirani Vincent Peirani is a virtuoso accordionist who has earned international recognition in the jazz world, and expresses himself with remarkable ease in a large number of musical genres, moving across boundaries with ease. His open-mindedness and boundless curiosity have led him through countless collaborations to shape his music with multiple influences. It is with an insatiable curiosity that he explores musical languages while bringing a touch of personal magic, and manages to breathe new life into well-known music. His music, as much as his personality, embraces different worlds and takes the listener on a new adventure.