LiveOne
Tunisian oud player, vocalist and composer Dhafer Youssef was brought up in a fishing village within a strict Muslim family group. He discovered his singing voice reciting in the local mosque and his interest in traditional Tunisian music led him to learn the oud, the traditional Arabian 12 or 13 stringed instrument. As a young man he was mentored by professor Mesbah Souli, the founder of the local youth orchestra and member of the Tunisian National Troupe. Through his relationship with Souli, Youssef found himself exposed to influences outside of the restrictions his culturally-confined village life. He relocated to Vienna and through contacts he met there began to develop a love of jazz which led to him forming Zeryab, his first band. In 1996 Youssef and Austrian percussionist Gerhard Reiter released the album Musafir (Arabic for traveller). From these early beginnings Youssef began to experiment with electronic sounds blending them with the distinctive clarity of the oud. His collaborations with various musicians started to become noticed around the globe and in 2003 he received two nominations for the BBC Award For World Music. He is a popular performer in the field of world music and takes part in performances around the globe and his playing has been featured in film scores including Ridley Scott's Gods And Kings and the soundtrack for the The Amazing Spider-Man.
Please enable Javascript to view this page competely.
