Driss El Maloumi Trio & Watar Quintet

Because of the purity and delicacy of his playing, Driss El Maloumi has been praised as a ‘magician of the oud’. As a child, he was already fascinated by the orchestras he heard in films, especially the violins and the harmonies. For years he has been thinking of collaborating with a chamber orchestra. After two years of preparation, his dream is finally fulfilled with the project Tafassil, where the strings and percussion of his trio fuse with the classical instruments of the Watar Quartet.

While Driss was composing for Tafassil, he observed daily life to capture its details: the dawn, the morning people, the sounds and smells of everyday life, the mothers getting their children ready for school, the dwindling rain, and so on. But he also reflected on how these seemingly insignificant details relate to the overwhelming global events.

Driss El Maloumi, born in Agadir, Morocco, has collaborated with many different ensembles and musicians such as Jordi Savall, Debashish Bhattacharya and Montserrat Figueras. He composed for theatre and film, among others. Driss forms his trio with two percussionists, his younger brother Saïd El Maloumi and Lahoucine Baqir.

Driss El Maloumi oud/vocals, Saïd El Maloumi daf/zarb/oudou/cajon, Lahoucine Baqir daf/darbouka/req, castanets/vocals, Amèle Metlini violin, Silvia Bazantova violin, Marie Ghitta viola, Merryl Havard cello, Adrien Tyberghein double bass