University of Chicago Presents Oud Player Rahim AlHaj in a Streaming Concert

Amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the University of Chicago Presents and artists and presenters around the world continue to bring live music to audiences across the globe with livestreamed performances. On Friday, June 5 at 7 pm CDT, the University of Chicago Presents teams up with the Chamber Music Society of Detroit's CameraMusic series, the Arab American Museum in Michigan, the University of Chicago's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and WFMT to present oud player Rahim AlHaj in a streaming concert from his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

AlHaj, who is widely considered one of the greatest living virtuosos of his ancient instrument, has garnered international renown since landing in the United States in 2000. A refugee of the Gulf War and an outspoken political activist, his music shares stories from his native Iraq, including his own, and speaks to the resilience of the human spirit and the unity of humanity in the face of opposition. An accomplished performer and composer of music for oud and mixed ensembles including string quartet, orchestra, and percussion, AlHaj has collaborated with such varied musicians as guitarist Bill Frisell, accordionist Guy Klucevsek, sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan, contemporary string ensemble Kronos Quartet, and indie-rock pioneers R.E.M.

AlHaj delivers a program of music for solo oud title "Hope and New Beginnings" on Friday, June 5 at 7:00 pm CDT (8:00 pm EDT) via concert stream on Facebook Live and YouTube Live. "Doors open" at 6:30 pm CDT, and Professor and ethnomusicologist Philip V. Bohlman will join AlHaj for a pre-concert talk. Complete information is available at chicagopresents.uchicago.edu.

DETAILS

FRIDAY / JUNE 5 / 7:00 PM CDT (8:00 PM EDT)
"Doors open" at 6:30 pm CDT
Pre-concert talk with Professor Philip V. Bohlman and Rahim AlHaj

Concert Stream: Rahim AlHaj, oud

Hope and New Beginnings

STREAM LOCATION
chicagopresents.uchicago.edu and chambermusicdetroit.org, and on Facebook Live and YouTube Live.

Concert information online at chicagopresents.uchicago.edu and chambermusicdetroit.org

ABOUT RAHIM ALHAJ

Rahim AlHaj, virtuoso oud musician and composer, was born in Baghdad, Iraq and began playing the oud (the grandfather of all stringed instruments) at the age of nine. Early on, it was evident that he had a remarkable talent for playing the oud. Alhaj studied under the renowned Munir Bashir, considered by many to be the greatest oud player ever, and Salim Abdul Kareem at the Institute of Music in Baghdad, Iraq. AlHaj won various awards at the Conservatory and graduated in 1990 with a diploma in composition. He holds a degree in Arabic Literature from Mustunsariya University in Baghdad. In 1991, after the first Gulf War, AlHaj was forced to leave Iraq due to his activism against the Saddam Hussein regime and began his life in Jordan and Syria. He moved to the United States in 2000 as a political refugee and has resided in Albuquerque, New Mexico ever since. AlHaj became a U.S. citizen on August 15, 2008. (read more)

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