Venue: Theatre, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street, Edinburgh.
Time: 7.30pm-9.30pm. Doors open from 7pm.
Event Description: The qanun, the Arabic zither, is a complex and beautiful 81-string instrument that traditionally requires a long apprenticeship to master. Considered as the 'canon' or 'measure' of Arabic music, the qanun plays a very important role in the world of Oriental music. Trained in both classical Arabic and classical Western music, Abdullah Chhadeh has developed his personal style that is marked by versatility, inventiveness and technical brilliance. The concert will feature both traditional pieces from the long classical heritage of the qanun, as well as Abdullah's own compositions, in which he draws as much from tradition as from modern influences.

Abdullah Chhadeh’s compositions speak of the people, places and emotions that have shaped his journey from East to West. Leaving Damascus in 1999 to move to the UK, he has since forged an international career as a qanun soloist and composer of striking technical brilliance and remarkable originality.

Born in Damascus, Syria in 1968, Abdullah’s musical talents developed early. He began his education in a camp for refugees in the Golan. A family friend fashioned a small oud (Arabic lute) for him, but when Abdullah first heard the qanun he knew this was the instrument for him. Chhadeh saw a qanun at a performance when he was 23, fell in love with the instrument, and convinced legendary qanun player Selim Serweh to teach him for two years, at the end of which the master had nothing left to teach his prodigious student. Five years at the Conservatoire of Damascus followed - a time in which Chhadeh honed his considerable skill as a composer, and secured himself a scholarship at London’s prestigious Guildhall School of Music. See: www.abdullahchhadeh.com
Cost: £10/£8 (Concessions). For tickets in advance:
Contact: 0131 220 3234, Tickets Scotland LTD, 127 Rose Street, Edinburgh. Open 9am-6pm (8pm Thursday), 11am-6pm Sundays.