Aykut DURSEN : double bassist
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​​Double bassist of Turkish origin, Aykut conducted his musical studies for many years at the
Ankara Conservatory, the Geneva Conservatory, the Vienna Conservatory and finally at the
Brussels Conservatory. He also attended the Nadia and Lili Boulanger Conservatory in Paris
for ten years. He was part of major classical orchestras, notably, as co-soloist, the Antwerp
Philharmonic Orchestra, and as soloist, the Ballet des Flanders and has given numerous
concerts as a soloist, chamber musician and musician on the international scene. After a
very classical career, he composed and performed, in 2006, Anatolian tunes for the Antwerp
Philharmonic Orchestra. He continues to develop a multidisciplinary approach through
Turkish music and the study of certain traditional musical instruments (lute, tambûr, saz)
which have always accompanied him. Double bassist of Turkish origin, Aykut conducted his
musical studies for many years at the Ankara Conservatory, the Geneva Conservatory, the
Vienna Conservatory and finally at the Brussels Conservatory. He also attended the Nadia
and Lili Boulanger Conservatory in Paris for ten years. He was part of major classical
orchestras, notably, as co-soloist, the Antwerp Philharmonic Orchestra, and as soloist, the
Ballet des Flanders and has given numerous concerts as a soloist, chamber musician and
musician on the international scene. After a very classical career, he composed and
performed, in 2006, Anatolian tunes for the Antwerp Philharmonic Orchestra. He continues
to develop a multidisciplinary approach through Turkish music and the study of certain
traditional musical instruments (lute, tambûr, saz) which have always accompanied him.
Peter BORCSOK : darbouka, riqq, bendir.
Peter is an international oriental percussionist of Hungarian origin currently based in Belgium. At the age of 15, he picked up a darbouka by chance and immediately fell in love with its sounds and connection. During his high school years, local musicians, seeing his curiosity and desire to improve, invited him to play with them. While practicing Balkan music and world music, Peter became more and more interested in the culture and musical roots of his instrument. His research led him to study with several professors including Akos Kertesz (HU), Laszlo Farkas Keonch (HU), Gabor Olvedi (HU), Fatima Gozlan (HU-ALG), to attend workshops and finally to a training camp. summer of oriental percussions. It was there that he first met the Egyptian master percussionist, Abdo Manssour, who quickly became his mentor and close friend maintaining his infinite motivation. He also discovered that playing the instrument with a dancer turned out to be something more meaningful and complex than just playing together or jamming. Peter worked on creating projects and did regular theater performances with Abdo and Amaraya, as well as with a group of Hungarian darbouka players: Amar Tabla Band. In Belgium, he regularly accompanies the Arab women's choir - AWSA Zamaan. The last few years of playing more and more classical Arabic music and tarab led him to learn riqq and bendir. Performing with oriental groups such as Nagham Zikrayet, Ensemble Tarabella, Amel Jem3, Ensemble ALWANE and Riad Takht’s Ensemble... his lifelong journey of learning and understanding continues.
Samir BENDIMERED : piano
Composer, arranger, and conductor and choir director, Samir Bendimered learned the piano at the age of 4 and the guitar at 10. Born in Morocco and of Algerian origin, he studied Arab-Andalusian classical music in Oran and Tlemcen. He then came to Belgium where he studied piano, harmony and counterpoint. Among his compositions are the operas Mathilde, L'aile du Papillon, La Marche des Anges, Safina, West Side East Side Story, Kompost, chamber music works and a drôlatorio for choir and orchestra, and also arrangements of oriental texts and melodies - program which was recorded and performed in Belgium, Holland, France, Spain and Morocco - or even classical music and world music for a jazz quintet formation with Soprano Madiha Figuigui - concerts at the Singel in Antwerp , at
Vooruit in Ghent, and in Brussels. Samir Bendimered discovered choral conducting with Pierre Cao and Denis Meunier, and orchestral conducting with Pierre Boulez and Peter Eotvôs. He notably conducted, in addition to his own creations, the Stabat Mater by Pergolsi, the “Requiem” and The Coronation Mass by W.A.Mozart, the Requiem by Fauré, the Mass in B by J.S.Bach), the Messiah by Handel, the Deutsches Requiem by J. Brahms, the Berliner Messe by Arvo Paert, and the operas: “Dido & Aeneas” and “King Arthur” by Henry Purcell. But playing the piano and harpsichord remains one of the essential activities for Samir Bendimered, and he often takes charge of the keyboard scores for the operas or
arrangements he produces. With "Iktar" (vocals, gembri, saxophone, cello, double bass, piano and percussion) or the "Qantra" ensemble (flute, string quintet and piano and
percussion), Samir Bendimered maintains the pleasure of playing on stage with musicians
from different backgrounds.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFiwJd86bYM
Ensemble Sawt, with Naziha Meftah on vocals. Extract from the Concert at Espace Magh, September 2014.
* Zyriâb ("Black Bird") was an exceptional singer and musician at the court of Baghdad which he had to leave for Andalusia. Thus, in 822, in Cordoba, he was at the origin of Arab-Andalusian music. He introduced the oud, created the first music conservatory and also revolutionized the art of living.