View source for Kinan Azmeh

{{Short description|Syrian musician (born 1976)}}
{{pp-semi-indef}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name             = Kinan Azmeh
| image            = Kinan Azmeh 2020.jpg
| caption          = Kinan Azmeh in 2020
| background       = non_vocal_instrumentalist
| birth_date       = {{Birth date|1976|6|10|mf=y}}
| birth_place      = [[Damascus]], [[Syria]]
| origin           = Syria
| instrument       = [[Clarinet]]
| genre            = [[Classical music|Contemporary classical]], [[Jazz]], [[World music]]
| occupation       = musician, composer
| label            = Dreyer Gaido
| current_member_of = [[Hewar|Hewar Ensemble]]
| website          = {{URL|www.kinanazmeh.com}}
}}

'''Kinan Azmeh''' ({{lang-ar|كنان العظمة|Kinān Azme}}, born June 10, 1976, in [[Damascus]]), is a [[Syrian]] [[clarinet]] player and composer of [[Contemporary Classical Music|contemporary classical music]] based in New York City. Performing with orchestras such as the [[New York Philharmonic]], the [[Seattle Symphony]], the [[Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra]], the [[West–Eastern Divan Orchestra]], or the Syrian Symphony Orchestra, he has played as a [[Solo (music)|soloist]] of classical works as well as of contemporary compositions.

==Life and career==
Born in Damascus, Syria in 1976, Azmeh began to play the clarinet at age six. Originally taking lessons on the [[violin]], he switched to an even-handed instrument that left-handed players did not play too differently from right-handed players.<ref name="FW">{{Cite web |title=dead link |url=http://www6.fw-magazine.com/?template=ARROW_3&tdfs=1&s_token=1665304226.0359380000&uuid=1665304226.0359380000&term=Online%20Magazine&term=News%20Media%20Monitoring%20Tools&term=Newsletter%20Subscription%20Service&term=Magazine%20Subscription%20Renewal&term=Subscription%20and%20Billing%20Management&searchbox=0&showDomain=0&backfill=0 |access-date=2022-10-09 |website=www6.fw-magazine.com}}</ref> Azmeh studied at the [[Higher Institute of Music in Damascus]]. At the [[University of Damascus]], he majored in [[electrical engineering]], at the same time pursuing his studies at the conservatory.<ref name="incognito">{{Cite web |title=Azmeh, Kinan |url=http://www.incognito.com.lb/store/node/235 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503072702/http://www.incognito.com.lb/store/node/235 |archive-date=2010-05-03 |website=www.incognito.com.lb}}</ref>

Azmeh received his master's degree and graduate diploma in music from the [[Juilliard School]] in [[New York City]]. In 1997, he was the first Arab musician to win the first prize in the Nicolai Rubinstein International Youth competition in [[Moscow]], [[Russia]].<ref name="incognito" />

Azmeh is based in [[New York City]], where he received his [[Ph.D.]] in 2013 at the [[City University of New York]] with [[Charles Neidich]].<ref name="azmehbio">{{Cite web|title=Biography of Kinan Azmeh|url=http://www.kinanazmeh.com/bio.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126180023/http://www.kinanazmeh.com/bio.htm|archive-date=2009-11-26|access-date=2012-09-09}}</ref>  From there, he regularly traveled to Damascus, where he played in a Syrian chamber group and has given numerous concerts and workshops.<ref name="npr" /><ref name="sequenza" /> These trips have ended, however, since the beginning of the [[Syrian Civil War]] in 2011. In March 2017, Azmeh made international news, because he was unable to return to New York City for some time, following the issuance of [[Executive Order 13769]] by U.S. President Donald Trump.<ref>{{cite web|date=February 1, 2017|title=Kinan Azmeh: Syrian Clarinetist Stranded in Beirut Thanks to Trump Ban|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/kinan-azmeh-syrian-clarinetist-stranded-in-beirut-thanks-to-trump-ban-117856/|publisher=Rolling Stone}}</ref>

In 2022, clarinet maker [[Henri Selmer Paris|Henri Selmer]] in Paris published a 160-page notebook for creative exercise and playing on their new clarinet type ''Muse,'' written in collaboration with Azmeh.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Unleash your creativity with Muse clarinets|url=https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/selmer/unleash-your-creativity-with-muse-clarinets|access-date=2022-02-06|website=www.selmer.fr}}</ref>

== Ensembles and performances ==
In 1995, Azmeh joined the Damascus-based pop music band ''Kulna Sawa'' (Arabic for: ''All of us together''), founded by composer and songwriter [[Iyad Rimawi]] and other young Syrian musicians. They produced two albums and were quite successful in the Middle East.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Art/2003/Apr-11/102144-kulna-sawa-readies-for-breakout-success-in-arab-world-and-europe.ashx|title=Kulna Sawa readies for breakout success in Arab world and Europe |website=www.dailystar.com.lb|access-date=2020-04-29|archive-date=2021-03-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210317130158/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Art/2003/Apr-11/102144-kulna-sawa-readies-for-breakout-success-in-arab-world-and-europe.ashx|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2003, Azmeh, singer [[Dima Orsho]], [[oud]] player [[Issam Rafea]] and others started the Syrian [[World music|world fusion]] band ''[[Hewar]]'' (Arabic for ''dialogue'').<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.qantara.de/content/syria-oriental-jazz-with-a-touch-of-classical-music|title=Syria: Oriental Jazz with a Touch of Classical Music - Qantara.de|website=Qantara.de - Dialogue with the Islamic World|language=en|access-date=2020-04-29}}</ref>  On his website, Azmeh describes ''Hewar'' as "an attempt to transcend the barriers of cultural disparities and misconceptions, and establish a civilized communication which builds on what brings humans closer together rather than separates them."<ref name="hewar">[http://www.kinanazmeh.com/hewarmusic.htm Hewar] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622082912/http://www.kinanazmeh.com/hewarmusic.htm|date=2011-06-22}}, on Azmeh's personal website</ref>  He claims that ''Hewar''<nowiki/>'s music draws from a variety of influences, from both the [[Arabic music|Arab world]] and the [[Western culture|West]].<ref name="hewar" />  In addition, Azmeh plays with the New York City-based City Band and with the band Neolexica.<ref name="sequenza">[http://www.sequenza21.com/2010/08/be-here-now-kinan-azmeh-and-dinuk-wijeratne-down-san-francisco-way/ Be Here Now - Kinan Azmeh and Dinuk Wijeratne Down San Francisco Way.]  Sequenza, 16 August 2010.</ref>  As a student at Juilliard, Azmeh co-founded Neolexica with pianist [[Dinuk Wijeratne]].<ref name="sequenza" />

In 2009, Azmeh played at the ''Arabesque Festival'' at the [[Kennedy Center]] in [[Washington D.C.]]<ref name="npr">[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101547802 Kinan Azmeh: A Syrian Frequent Flier With Clarinet in Hand.]  NPR, 7 March 2009.</ref> He has also played with the [[Syrian National Symphony Orchestra]], debuting a clarinet concerto written especially for him by Syrian composer [[Zaid Jabri]] at the opening of the [[Damascus Opera House]].<ref name="sequenza" /> In addition, he performed and recorded with [[Daniel Barenboim]]'s [[West-Eastern Divan Orchestra]],<ref>{{Cite news|last=Higgins|first=Charlotte|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/aug/24/classicalmusicandopera.israelandthepalestinians|title=Can music bring hope to a war zone?|date=2005-08-24|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-04-29|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> as well as with [[Yo-Yo Ma]]'s [[The Silk Road Ensemble|Silk Road Ensemble]]<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-music-of-strangers-yo-yo-ma-and-the-silk-road-ensemble-review-grace-notes-from-all-over-1465499138|title='The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble' Review: Grace Notes From All Over|last=Morgenstern|first=Joe|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=9 June 2016 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-28}}</ref> that won a [[Grammy Award]] for the album ''Sing Me Home'' in 2017.

Having performed frequently in Germany, for example in Hamburg's [[Elbphilharmonie]], Azmeh is also a frequent guest and workshop mentor of the [[Morgenland Festival Osnabrück|Morgenland Festival]] in [[Osnabrück]], Germany.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.qantara.de/content/morgenland-festival-osnabruck-2016-from-the-balkans-to-the-levant|title=Morgenland Festival Osnabruck 2016: From the Balkans to the Levant - Qantara.de|website=Qantara.de - Dialogue with the Islamic World|language=en|access-date=2020-04-28}}</ref> In 2019, he published his double CD "''Uneven Sky''",<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dreyer-gaido.de/index.php/de/katalog/10-katalog-cd/114-kinan-azmeh-uneven-sky|title=Kinan Azmeh - Uneven Sky|website=www.dreyer-gaido.de|access-date=2020-04-28}}</ref> with Yo-Yo Ma as guest artist on cello and the [[Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin]], presenting works by Syrian [[Contemporary classical music|contemporary composers]] [[Kareem Roustom]], Zaid Jabri, Dia Succari as well as his own compositions. This album was awarded the prestigious 2019 [[:de:Klassik Opus Award|Klassik Opus Award]] in Germany.

For Azmeh's 2021 album ''Flow'', his compositions were arranged by Wolf Kerschek and recorded with the Hamburg-based [[Norddeutscher Rundfunk#Musical organizations|NDR bigband]]. A review in the German jazz magazine ''Jazzthetik'' commented on the opening track: “Above all, Azmeh reveals the essence of his music in this prologue: It's not Arabia, not jazz, not classical, it's all of that - the elements flow into each other."<ref>{{cite web|last=Döring|first=Ralf|date=|year=|title=Kinan Azmeh – To jazz or not to jazz?|url=https://jazzthetik.de/kinan-azmeh-to-jazz-or-not-to-jazz/|access-date=2022-02-05|website=jazzthetik.de|language=de-DE}}</ref> For May 2024, the German NDR bigband announced concerts in New York, Philadelphia and Chicago, featuring Azmeh and music from his album ''Flow''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=NDR |title=US-Tour May 2024: NDR Bigband feat. Kinan Azmeh |url=https://www.ndr.de/orchester_chor/bigband/US-Tour-May-2024-NDR-Bigband-feat-Kinan-Azmeh,bigband528.html |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=www.ndr.de |language=}}</ref>

In June 2022, the Morgenland Festival presented Azmeh’s composition ''Songs for Days to Come,'' his first production of a [[musical theatre]]. The songs and libretto are based on poems by contemporary Syrian poets, expressing the sufferings of the [[Syrian civil war]]. Sung in [[Arabic]] by Syrian soprano [[Dima Orsho]] and the Osnabrück opera choir, they are meant to express the melody of the Arabic language.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Morgenland Festival Osnabruck: Songs for days to come - Qantara.de |url=https://en.qantara.de/content/morgenland-festival-osnabruck-songs-for-days-to-come |access-date=2022-08-09 |website=Qantara.de - Dialogue with the Islamic World |language=en |quote=The Osnabruck opera choir underwent months of language training in order to be able to perform the poems with the correct pronunciation, and director Daniel Inbal got to grips with the subtleties of Arabian styles of music.}}</ref>

==Selected discography==

* ''Starlighter (2023)'' with string quartet [[Brooklyn Rider]] and percussionist Mathias Kunzli
* ''Flow (2021)'' with the NDR Bigband
* ''Uneven Sky'' (2019), with Yo-Yo Ma and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, [[:de:Opus Klassik Award|Opus Klassik Award]] in Germany
*''Levant'' (2018), with [[Eric Vloeimans]] and Jeroen van Vliet
*''Orient & Occident'' (2012), with the Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra
*''Elastic City'' (2012), with the Kinan Azmeh Quartet
*''Complex Stories, Simple Sounds'' (2009), with the Azmeh-Wijeratne Duo
*Syrian Contemporary Chamber Music (2008), with the Damascus Festival Chamber Players
*''Rigodon'' (2007), original sound track
*''Musaique'' (2004), with Kulna Sawa (Syrian pop music band)
*''Kulna Sawa'' (2001), with Kulna Sawa
'''as member of Hewar (Syrian world music band)'''
*''Hewar'' (2005)
*''9 Days of Solitude: The Damascus Session'' (2006) with guest artist [[Manfred Leuchter]] (accordion)
*''Letters to a homeland'' (2012)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==

* [https://www.proquest.com/openview/0ef9f2696b497da8740d2ed4b69b3553/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750 Azmeh, Kinan (2013). ''Arab music vocabulary in Syrian contemporary clarinet chamber works''. City University of New York. (Ph.D. thesis)]

==External links==
*[http://www.kinanazmeh.com/ Kinan Azmeh's official webpage]
*[http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_ID=10&article_ID=8022&categ_id=4 Daily Star Article]
*[http://www.juilliard.edu/update/journal/j_articles277.html Gilgamesh performance at Juilliard School]
*[https://www.npr.org/2013/01/29/169074246/daniel-barenboim-and-members-of-the-west-eastern-divan-orchestra?t=1588176065638 Kinan Azmeh: ''Prayer – A Tribute to Edward Said'']
*[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIqcvoriI2iMMCWO_ZQg_Wg Kinan Azmeh at Morgenland Festival Osnabrück]
*[https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kinan-azmeh-mn0001710413/compositions Kinan Azmeh at AllMusic]
*[https://www.discogs.com/artist/1367570-Kinan-Azmeh Kinan Azmeh on discogs]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azmeh, Kinan}}
[[Category:1976 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Syrian musicians]]
[[Category:Syrian clarinetists]]
[[Category:Syrian composers]]
[[Category:Entertainers from Damascus]]
[[Category:21st-century clarinetists]]
[[Category:Syrian contemporary artists]]
[[Category:Al-Azma family]]