Composed and performed on viola d’amore by Jasser Haj Youssef
Jasser Haj Youssef was born in Monastir, Tunisia and studied both classical European
music and classical Arabic music (maqām) from an early age. His first instrument was
the violin. Later he began playing the Baroque viola d’amore, which has sympathetic
string that are not bowed, but create a rich, resonant sound. Haj Youssef’s professional
career has merged his interests and talents in the improvisatory art of maqām, classical
chamber and orchestral music, jazz, and world music.
