‘Interstices’

“ElSaffar has been esteemed for a new methodology towards the much-maligned world music genre….[he] is a jazz musician first, introducing his ethnicity (Iraqi) as an integrated part of his aesthetic.” (The New York City Jazz Record)

The internationally-acclaimed trumpet player and composer Amir ElSaffar joins forces with the contemporary classical music ensemble Ictus. Ictus’s refined microtonality blends in seamlessly with the Middle Eastern maqâm traditions, which ElSaffar has studied extensively.

The internationally-acclaimed Iraqi-American trumpeter and composer Amir ElSaffar performs in BOZAR on two occasions this season, showing how versatile and open-minded this great artist really is. Earlier in the season, he will be joined on stage by his Rivers of Sound Orchestra for a hypnotic jazz concert with plenty of Middle Eastern influences. For this second concert, ElSaffar joins forces with the contemporary classical music ensemble Ictus. The group explores relatively uncharted areas of classical music, including microtonality, a system based on tiny tonal intervals, that is also to be found in Middle Eastern maqâm traditions, while ElSaffar is the quintessential maqâm specialist after years of extensive study. The trumpeter will be performing a brand-new own composition, with Ictus, based on the fascinating world of microtonality.

It's our treat! Listen to BOZAR’s playlists on Spotify for free and discover BOZAR MUSIC season ’18-’19: WORLD / JAZZ