In review--Ouds, Tears, Poetry
Le Trio Joubran À l’ombre de mots World Village In 2008 I had the great pleasure of interviewing Le Trio Joubran for an arts supplement article. Unfortunately I missed the trio’s concert at Western Washington University, though I was told that the musicians performed for a receptive audience. The Palestinian oud-playing brothers compose and play seamless pieces performed on ouds crafted by their own hands. The music wraps sublime, melancholic, and fiery emotions into its own poetic expression. But mostly, this recording with its CD and DVD (same program) provides a requiem for a favorite Arab poet. You can see those ouds and the brothers’ passionate performance on the DVD portion of À l’ombre de mots , which features a concert commemorating the death of the renowned Palestinian poet and activist Mahmoud Darwhich (Darwash). And in fact, the late poet’s voice appears ghostlike reciting his poetry along with the oud compositions. The camera zooms across the musician’s faces, s...