Maya Youssef Trio - Finding Home(SY)

När Maya Youssef intar scenen möts arabisk musik och jazz i en magisk kombination. Med sin mästerliga teknik på det 78-strängade instrumentet qanun förvandlar hon musiken till ett uttryck för både kraft och sårbarhet. Traditionellt spelas qanun av män, men det hindrade inte Maya från att fascineras av dess klang när hon för första gången hörde instrumentet i Damaskus. Hennes kompositioner är både dramatiska och meditativa och bär på en läkande kraft – en musikalisk motpol till det lidande och den förstörelse som präglat hennes hemland och fortsätter att plåga Mellanöstern.

When Maya Youssef takes the stage, Arabic music and jazz meet in a magical fusion. With her masterful technique on the 78-stringed qanun, she transforms music into an expression of both power and vulnerability. Traditionally played by men, the qanun captivated Maya from the first time she heard its sound in Damascus. Her compositions are both dramatic and meditative, embodying a healing force—a musical counterpoint to the suffering and destruction that have marked her homeland and continue to affect the Middle East.

Known as the "queen of the qanun," Maya Youssef is an award-winning composer and musician from Syria, internationally acclaimed for her innovative style and moving performances. Born in Damascus, she came to the United Kingdom in 2012 due to the war. Since then, she has challenged and expanded the traditions of the qanun, performing on stages across Europe and the Arab world.

Tonight, Maya will be joined by Ben Smith (piano, keyboards) and Elizabeth Nott (percussion). Together, they will perform music from her debut album Syrian Dreams (a prayer for peace), produced by the legendary Joe Boyd, as well as from her follow-up Finding Home and new material from her upcoming release.

Maya has received honors including the PRS Women Make Music grant and a project grant from Arts Council England for the recording of Finding Home, which was released on March 25, 2022. The album has received five-star reviews in both international and British press and was nominated for the prestigious German Record Critics’ Award. In September 2022, Finding Home reached the top of the Transglobal World Music Chart, and in December, it was selected as one of Songlines’ Top 10 Albums of the Year.

Beyond her compositions and recordings, Maya is also a respected broadcaster, lecturer, and educator, whose work and life story have touched and inspired many.

“Exquisite...a powerful homage, twists Arabic music cliches'' - The Guardian.

“An album of skill and power...a dizzying sweep of genres from flamenco to jazz. A transportive cinematic listen” - The Musician Magazine.

On stage:
Maya Youssef – qanun
Ben Smith – piano, keyboards
Elizabeth Nott – percussion