WOMAD

Khyam Allami & Andrea Piccioni

13:00 25th July on the BBC Radio 3 Stage

21st-century oud dude
With his good looks and corkscrew hair, Khyam Allami could be mistaken for a rock musician - indeed, he does currently play drums for the prog-influenced outfit Knifeworld. But it's as a dazzlingly accomplished oud player where his growing eminence resides, a reputation enhanced most recently by being named as the first recipient of the BBC Radio 3 World Routes Academy mentorship, a new initiative that places promising young musicians in collaboration with wise musical elders. That he's chosen to link up with legendary Iraqi singer (and past WOMAD performer) Ilham al-Madfai confirms Khyam's continuing fascination with the music of his forebears. Born in Syria to Iraqi parents, he's been an adopted Londoner since the age of nine, but - as his beautiful and lonesome oud playing demonstrates - he's still immutably connected to his motherland. Extra flavour comes courtesy of the equally eminent master percussionist Andrea Piccioni.
(Biography written by Nige Tassell 2010)

Khyam Allami Biography

Khyam Allami is a young and active London based musician of Iraqi descent. Born to an Iraqi family in Damascus, Syria, in 1981 and brought up in London from the age of 9, his passion for music began in Syria at the tender age of 8 in preparation for the role of a young violinist in the art-house film Al-Tahaleb directed by Rimon Butrus (1991).
From the Violin his interests moved towards Rock and in 1996 began to play Drums and Bass Guitar with two groups Ursa and Art of Burning Water. In 2004 his interests took a turn once again and he began to study the '?d (or Oud; Arabic Lute), Arabic music theory and traditional Iraqi repertoire with the London based Iraqi maestro Ehsan Emam, with who he continues to study today.
After graduating with a BA Honours in Music Studies (Ethnomusicology) from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London in June 2008, Khyam was awarded a SOAS scholarship to continue his studies for an MMus in Performance as Research. His practical, performance based masters research focuses on the Iraqi '?d school, its influences and development, those being the Turkish and Egyptian '?d schools alongside the classical and folk music of Iraq. In January 2009 Khyam was awarded a research grant by the British Institute for the Study of Iraq (BISI) to travel to Cairo, Egypt and study the '?d with the Iraqi virtuoso Naseer Shamma at Beit al-'Ud al- 'Arabi (Arab Oud House). During this visit he also studied the compositions of the legendary Egyptian violinist/composer Abdo Dagher with the composer himself, alongside Egyptian repertoire and technique with the young Egyptian virtuoso Hazem Shaheen. This was followed by a trip to Istanbul in April 2010 to study Turkish '?d with the maestro Mehmet Bitmez.
His other activities include performances in Baku, Azerbaijan (June 2008) with the Sabina Rakcheyeva Trio broadcast on national Azeri televeision (AZTV), a solo '?d session for BBC Radio 3's World Routes (August 2008) and many performances across the UK including St Paul's Cathedral, the British Museum, the Muslim Music Festival in Oxford, the first Iraqi Cultural Festival in London, the experimental/rock music festival Supersonic in Birmingham. In December 2009 he also worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company in a two month long run production of Arabian Nights at the Courtyard Theatre in Stratford- Upon-Avon.
In 2010 Khyam was the first recipient of the BBC Radio 3 World Routes Academy scholarship/mentorship. This is a new initiative by BBC R3 named after its flagship programme, aims to support and inspire young world music artists by bringing them together with an internationally renowned artist in the same field. In its first year, the WRA focuses on Iraq and gives Khyam the opportunity to work with the renowned Iraqi singer Ilham al-Madfai and will culminate with a concert as part of the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in London, which will be broadcast live on BBC R3.
Alongside this fantastic opportunity, Khyam was asked to curate an afternoon of events focusing on Iraqi culture as part of London Refugee Week's Celebrating Sanctuary Festival, and will be performing at the WOMAD festival in the UK. Meanwhile Khyam is working on original compositions, that lean more towards the contemporary as opposed to tradition, under the artistic influence of Frank Zappa, Abdo Dagher, King Crimson, Secret Chiefs 3, Hossein Alizade, Riyad Al-Sunbati, Philip Glass, Naseer Shamma, Jaz Coleman and many others.
(Biography supplied by artist 2010)

www.khyamallami.com

Andrea Piccioni Biography

Considered one of the greatest exponents of the art of frame drumming, Andrea Piccioni, through his studies with great Italian, European, Persian, Turkish, Indian and American teachers (M. Metzler, D. Chemirani, G. Velez), has developed an extraordinary capacity to move through various musical genres and styles, re-ellaborating the language of the Tamburello and various frame drums in a truly personal manner, both virtuosic and expressive.
Founder of the first international frame drums festival "European Frame Drummers Meeting" (Barcelona, Spain), he also holds regular workshops and masterclasses at prestigious festivals including: Nafda (USA), Big Bang Festival (Dublin, Ireland), Internationales Percussionfestival Freistadt (Freistadt, Austria), Tamburi Iran (Isfahan, Iran), Percpan 2009 (Brasile) and is a resident at the most important frame drums festival worldwide, Tamburi Mundi (Freiburg, Germany).
He is president of the Frame Drums Italia association, and Artistic Director of their annual frame drums festival in the Marche region of Italy (FDI international frame drums festival).
During the academic year 2008/2009 he taught a course of Frame Drums and Mediterranean Percussion at the conservatoire of Vicenza "Arrigo Pedrollo" in Italy. His musical collaborations include:
World Music: Nidi D'arac, Unavantaluna, Indaco, Lucilla Galeazzi, Milagro Acustico, Tamburo Mundi (GE), Glen Velez & Lori Cotler (USA).
Jazz: Antonio Calogero, Ensemble Fisfuz (GE/Turk), Paul Mccandless (USA), Camera Ensemble.
Ancient Music: Ensemble Enchiriadis, Freiburger Spielleyt (GE), Orlando Di Lasso Ensemble (GE), Les Haulz Et Les Bas (GE)
In 2008 he participated in the theatrical production "Edipo e la Pizia" by the director Lucia Poli, with Lucia Poli and Giorgio Rossi. In 2010 he was asked by the Teatro dell'Opera of St Polten (Austria) to take part in the Theatre/Dance/ Music production "Engel Der Verzweiflung" by Joachim Schloemer, with who he is currently touring
Europe. He is the author of the first method book for the Italian Tamburello titled "Il Tamburello Italiano",
published in 2006 by Ritmi magazine (previously Percussioni), and in 2009 he published the first DVD teaching method entirely dedicated to the Tamburello, also titled "Il Tamburello Italiano".
In collaboration with the German instrument makers Anklang Musikwelt he has created two different signature
models of Tamburello. He also collaborates with and is endosed by the USA's Cooperman Drums with who he recently realised an innovative Tamburello and a model of the Tammorra, both with synthetic skin.

www.andreapiccioni.net

(Biography supplied by artist management 2011)