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Mini-Biography
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RootsWorld Bulletin, Mini-Biography >>
Le Trio Joubran's Randana is the work of three
brothers, also Palestinians with Israeli
citizenship, born in Nazareth. Samir, 33, also
eventually took up residence in the West Bank;
more recently he too has gone into temporary
exile in Europe. He has been performing and
recording solo for the last several years,
especially in Europe, to growing acclaim. In 2002
Samir released the album Tamaas, recorded with
his younger brother Wissam, 22, an 'ud player and
maker, a graduate of the Antonio Stradivari
Institute in Italy. On Randana, Samir and Wissam
are joined by their younger brother Adnan, 20.
The inspiration for this recording, according to
Samir, was the guitar trio of Al Dimeola, Paco de
Lucia and John McLaughlin. Mercifully, Le Trio
Joubran don't sound much like their inspiration;
there's no speed picking or overblown energy. I
don't hear much trio playing either, but rather
solo or duo playing, and I'm unable to
distinguish between the three 'udists. The
instrumental compositions, by the trio, are
rooted in the improvisational taqsim tradition,
and are mostly contemplative, quietly rather than
emotionally expressive. The 'ud playing,
improvisation, and composition rank among the
finest I've heard, although they don't quite
achieve the level of master 'ud innovators like
the Tunisian Anouar Brahem or the Iraqi Nassir
Shamma. The only weak spot on the album is the
group's live rendition of the Muhammad Abdul
Wahhab composition, "Ahwak," made famous by the
great Egyptian singer, Abdel Halim Hafiz and
performed as a kind of sing-along. Samir's vocal
is so inadequate to the task that I always want
to stop the CD and listen to Abdel Halim's version again.
Listen: http://www.cdroots.com/audio/randana1.mp3
06/26/06 >> go there
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