Kinan Azmeh
Encyclopedia
Life
Born in DamascusDamascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
in 1976, Azmeh began to play the clarinet after taking lessons in the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
before switching to the clarinet. Kinan studied at the Arab conservatory of music in Damascus, the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and the University of Damascus
University of Damascus
The University of Damascus is the largest and oldest university in Syria, located in the capital Damascus and has campuses in other Syrian cities. It was founded in 1923 through the merger of the School of Medicine and the Institute of Law , also making it the oldest university in modern-day Syria...
(where he majored in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
).
Kinan has appeared worldwide as a soloist, composer and improviser. Notable appearances include: Opera Bastille, Paris; Tchaikovsky Grand Hall, Moscow; Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and the UN's general assembly, New York; the Royal Albert hall, London; Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires; der Philharmonie; Berlin; the Library of Congress, the Kennedy Center, Washington DC; the Mozarteum, Salzburg and the Damascus opera house for its opening concert in his native Syria.
As classical Clarinetist, he has appeared as soloist with the Bavarian radio orchestra, the West-eastern Divan orchestra, the Kiev Camerata, the Corasara Orchestra, and the Syrian symphony Orchestra among others.; and has shared the stage with Marcel Khalife, Daniel Barenboim, Zakir Hussein Francois Rabbath, Solhi-al-Wadi, Manfred Leuchter, Kevork Mourad, and members of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, among others.
He has appeared with the Syrian National Symphony Orchestra, debuting a clarinet concerto by Zaid Jabri. and has also played in Ramallah with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra under the baton of Daniel Barenboim. He is one of the five members of the band Hewar
Hewar
Hewar is a jazz fusion band from Syria, formed in 2003.-History:Hewar is an all-Syrian lineup of talent: The band is made up of a clarinetist , a Oud soloist , a lyric Soprano ,Khaled Omran , Simon Mreach , Badi Rafea all of whom are alumni of the Syrian National Orchestra...
, which formed in 2003 and whose name means "dialogue" in Arabic. In addition, Azmeh plays with the New York City-based City Band and with the band Neolexica. kinan co-founded Neolexica with pianist Dinuk Wijeratne.
With Hewar
- HewarHewar (album)Hewar is the first album by the Syrian jazz fusion band Hewar. Released in Damascus and Beirut in January 2005.-Track listing:#Departure#Evening#Project#Loquacity#Dance#Prayer #Rituals#Ink- References :**...
(2005) - 9 Days of Solitude: The Damascus Session9 Days of Solitude: The Damascus Session9 Days of Solitude: The Damascus Session is the second album by the Syrian jazz fusion band Hewar. Released in Damascus in July 2007.-Track listing:#Wedding#Zar#4 Days Later#Arabesque#Airports#Lovo on 139th street in D#Monterosa#Neyanana...
(2006)
Duo Abum
- Complex Stories, Simple Sounds (2009) with Sri-Lankan Pianist Dinuk Wijeratne.
Original Sound Tracks
- Not for Sale (2004)
- Rigodon (2006)
- Rodage (2009)
- Generation 9/11 (2010)