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JOSEPH TAWADROS - Angel

Joseph Tawadros never ceases to amaze and at 24 seems to have achieved more than most. With a Freedman Fellowship under his belt, two young Australian of the year nominations, two limelight awards, three ARIA nominations and four albums to his name. He continues to appear at festivals and concert halls throughout the world, dazzling audiences with his brilliant technique, his passionate musicianship and his joyous style of performance.

Now Joseph joins with three of Australia’s finest virtuosos; his prodigiously talented brother James on percussion, celebrated jazz pianist Matt McMahon and Greek clarinettist Dimitri Vouras in this very special recording - transporting us into another world with the magical sounds of the oud.

The music featured on ANGEL, his 5th album, was all composed by Joseph when he was in Paris, London and Istanbul in 2007. It is a collection of original, rhythmically complex yet relaxed and highly imaginative compositions dispersed with soulful improvisations. It is a CD of musical maturity beyond Joseph’s years and places him squarely in the ranks of the world’s greatest Oud players.

Joseph plays the Oud, a fretless stringed instrument, the Egyptian ancestor of the lute.

Born in Cairo in 1983, Joseph came to Australia at 2 years of age. By the age of 12 he was a seasoned concert performer, playing alongside his teacher Mohamed Youssef. He was encouraged to explore the musical parameters of the instrument and the traditional Egyptian Taqasim, a performing style based on modal improvisation. Tawadros has since developed a truly unique and distinctive personal style, and his compositional freshness and virtuosity are both evident on ANGEL.

“Taking the Oud out of its traditional environments, placing and taking it to a wider audience is my driving force and something that is very important to me,” says Joseph.

JOSEPH TAWADROS - Angel is available through Birdland Records and distributed by Creative Vibes

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