Album : Ifrikiya, Artist : Karim Ziad & Ifrikya
Release date : 2001, Number of discs : 1
Genre : World, Total size : 117 MB
Total time : 00:51:11

Tracks :
1. Aît Oumrar (trad. arr. by Karim Ziad / Abdelkbir Merchane)
2. Ya Rijal (Karim Ziad / Nguyên Lê)
3. Awra (trad. arr. by Karim Ziad / Hamid Mestari)
4. Lebnia (trad. arr. by Karim Ziad)
5. Alouhid (Karim Ziad / Takfarinas / Nguyên Lê)
6. Sandiya (rad. arr. by Karim Ziad / Abdelkbir Merchane)
7. Amalia (trad. arr. by Karim Ziad)
8. Gwarir (Karim Ziad)
9. The Joker (Bojan Zulfikarpasic)
10. Nesrafet (Karim Ziad)

@ 320 K bit/s mp3

The muffled and at the same time sonorous call of the Gumbri rings out. This Moroccan string instrument combines melodic and percussive qualities, and stands as a symbol for the music of the Maghreb. Yet before we can get our bearings, a complex Euro-Afro-American sound comes in. Welcome to Paris. Welcome to the multi-cultural ambience of percussionist Karim Ziad’s music. The 34 year old Karim Ziad looks back to his youth in Algiers, a city that, in contrast to its current condition, exuded a multi-cultural flair not so many years ago. It was here that Ziad collected his first musical experiences. Ziad commented, "When I was young I didn’t just hear music from Morocco and Algeria. Algiers was always a cultural melting pot. We had radio and TV, and Europe was around the corner. A half-hour on the plane and you’re there. I didn’t have to think about my music, since all those elements that I was hearing simply came together." Karim Ziad received his first finishing as a percussionist in bands playing at marriages. Within the Maghreb musical repertoire it was necessary to feel as at home with French songs, funk, Berber music, as well as other African and Oriental musical traditions. Karim Ziad came to Paris when he was 20. Here he found a multi-ethnic climate with no barriers or borders. He quickly made contact with other musicians, playing with Joe Zawinul, and with Cheb Mami’s band. He soaked up musical experiences like a sponge, and searched for the best way to combine all those musical elements and tendencies that made up his daily experiences. However he never chanced upon that magic elixir that would leave him satisfied. It was with Nguyên Lê’s "Maghreb & Friends" (ACT 9261-2) that he was able to take the crucial next step. "I learned a lot about how to deal with sound from Nguyên. Even so I approach music differently than he does. He is very intellectual. I on the other hand trust only my heart and my ears."