Readings, music, and Eastern delicacies with Sabîl (Youssef Hbeisch on percussion, Ahmad Alkhatib on oud), Ramzi Aburedwan (bouzouki), and Sylvain Machac (actor).
Sabîl tells the story of two artists on a journey, while keeping memory of their roots. Rooted in classical Arab heritage and nourished by Sufi mysticism, their creations explore new sounds, colors, and rhythms, pushing Eastern music in bold directions. The delicacy of the oud’s patterns and the powerful vibrations of the percussion touch the audience every time, making the two musicians on stage seem to breathe in unison.
Because linked to the tragedies of the Arab world, the bitterness that emanates from this music spills over into the universal, speaking to anyone torn between the pains of the past and the capacity to savor the present moment—exile and the inevitability of “it goes without saying.”
Yet Ahmad Alkhatib’s compositions also make room for the gentleness of a breeze or the joy of a wedding dance. Less nostalgia, then, than the tension of striving forward. Considered in the Arab world as a successor to the great oud virtuosos, Ahmad Alkhatib’s modesty, full of dignity, impresses. Son of a poet, his musical quest—always in service of the listener’s emotion—reveals the grave nobility of an imperative search for meaning. Youssef Hbeisch lives between Haifa, Paris, and stages around the world. Striking, brushing, caressing each percussion at the precise moment and with the right pressure is his way of expressing, in sound, both inner worlds and external realities.
Saint-Omer
Le Moulin à Café – Théâtre à l’Italienne
