The Bedouin troubador accompanies himself on unusual instruments that he plays with virtuosity. While the oud and bouzouki that Abaji uses may not be particularly surprising, his sitar guitar and reed saxophone are a great deal more amazing.
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Abaji describes the wandering blues that has haunted his music since he landed in Orly, France on an airplane from Beirut
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The five-string sitar that Abaji invented with Team Laser. It has dictated his sound ever since
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How Abaji lost his roots in the bay of Beirut, and then found them again, thanks to music
Abaji’s many peregrinations have brought him face to face with sounds and instruments that range from the Greek bouzouki to Bali’s bamboo flutes, via Bolivian charango and Mexican percussion. All of these influences came together in December 2004 in his multi-disciplinary show “Isis & Oasis”. His compositions highlight the dancing of Emeline Gillan and the photographs of the Mauritanian desert. Abaji’s music is born of one of the Middle East’s major tragedies, the 20-year-long civil war in Lebanon. The traumas he escaped from have not blighted his optimism and open-minded desire to study endless musical paths. The multi-instrumentalist’s 2004 exploration of Saharan philosophy and culture was an opportunity to return to an earlier interview, shortly after the release of his album “Bédouin Blues”.
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