Tarek Abdallah & Adel Shams El Din

The wasla is a particular expression of a musical suite developed by different Arab traditions—the type nuba in Africa or fasl in Syria. Besides its primary definition meaning “connecting,” the term wasla also refers to the specific Egyptian tradition which was practiced between the last third of the nineteenth century until the 1940s (nowadays referred to as the “classical musical suite”). This period called Nahda is considered the “Golden Age,” not only of this musical tradition, but also the art of Egyptian oud solo. The album Wasla is a creation developed by Tarek Abdallah proposing to renew the relationship with the Golden Age of this musical tradition through a personal approach to composition, interpretation, and improvisation in the Egyptian musical suite.

Tarek Abdallah and Adel Shams El-Din, both from Alexandria, have lived in France for many years. However, they did not meet until very recently, in spring 2013, but what a meeting! Fluent in the language of Egyptian classical tradition, the duo evokes the fascinating history of this music while extending it with spirited and contemporary-inspired compositions. The shape of the duo offers these interpreters joy and freedom.

Tarek Abdallah : oud and voice.

Born in Alexandria in 1975, composer and interpreter Tarek Abdallah draws his inspiration from the golden age of the art of Egyptian oud solo (1910–1930), which is in the center of his musicological researches at the University Lumière Lyon 2. Graduated in 2005 by the Arab Oud House in Cairo, he now lives in France and he is at present a PhD student in Musicology and multiplies the experiences connected to the transmission, to the broadcasting, and to the popularization of the knowledge bound to the Arabic Lute: courses, creations, and workshops throughout the Mediterranean. He also collaborates with artists of various traditions, from jazz to baroque, from contemporary dance, and theater to world music.

Adel Shams El-Din : riqq

Already established with a reputation of master musician in his late twenties in Egypt, at the age of 30 Adel Shams El-Din left his double career as soloist with the Radio of Alexandria and mechanical engineer with the Egyptian railways to come to Europe and concentrate on his career as a musician. His exceptional technique, exquisite sound, and vast knowledge of rhythmic cycles from Middle Eastern music to jazz and flamenco, make him the most sought after riqq (classical Arabic tambourine) player on the international stage today. He insists on playing the traditional Egyptian fish skin riqqs because in his words, “The sound is the soul of the instrument; and that sound creates the soul of the music.”