Rob's Album of the Week

Artist: Anouar Brahem
Album: Le Voyage de Sahar (2006)

Anouar Brahem is a Tunisian musician who plays the oud, which is the Arabic fretless lute. He's well grounded in the Arabic traditions, but currently he really loves improvising with Turkish and European musicians to create a kind of music that bridges East and West. It's a mixture of Middle East modes, free jazz, and chamber music; it's gorgeous, reflective, and spiritual.

On this album, his latest, he works with two French guys - one on piano and the other on accordion. Trust me, it works. This is "thinking" music for me.

Here's the link to Amazon, where you can hear sound samples.