Jeroen van Vliet & Afra Mussawisade ft. Kinan Azmeh: Gloom
Jeroen van Vliet piano/electronics, Kinan Azmeh clarinet/effects, Afra Mussawisade percussion/loops/samples
The collaboration between Dutch pianist Jeroen van Vliet and Iranian percussionist Afra Mussawisade has already produced some amazing music in the past. Together they decided to record an album revolving around the harmonic richness of Jeroen’s playing and the colorful palette of Afra’s percussion, with subtle touches of electronics. Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh added soulful melodies. Now all three of them will perform together playing music off of that album, Gloom, which was released in 2022.
On Gloom, Afra Mussawisade comes to the fore as a composer, writing most of the pieces alongside contributions by Jeroen van Vliet. They have been playing together for years, for example in the band Sikeda, which has performed on our stage several times. Afra grew up in Iran in a musical household, and he studied Persian classical percussion. In Europe he developed his own unique style. Afra considers rhythm as his mother tongue. Boy Edgar Prize-winner Jeroen van Vliet made name as the pianist in Paul van Kemenade’s band, and he is a member of Eric Vloeimans’ Levanter, together with Kinan Azmeh. This clarinetist from Damascus uses music to transcend cultural barriers, for example in Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble.