Khyam Allami © Camille Blake-29
In this performance, Allami presents a new electronic maqāmic work utilising Apotome; a free browser-based software he created in collaboration with Counterpoint Studio. Apotome is the catch-all title for a transcultural music project highlighting the cultural asymmetries, biases and non-neutrality inherent in modern sonic technologies, alongside their interconnected web of musical, educational, cultural, social and political ramifications.

Practical Information

  • Apotome (Solo Live Performance by Khyam Allami)
  • No registration required * everyone welcome
  • Free admission
  • Doors open: 19:30
  • Concert Starts: 20:00
  • Questions and Answers: 20:45

In collaboration with Tashattot Collective.

About Khyam Allami

Khyam Allami is an Iraqi-British multi-instrumentalist musician, composer, researcher, and founder of Nawa Recordings. His artistic research and practice explore experimental composition and improvisation based on and inspired by the fundamentals of Arabic music and culture. Recent works include A Relational Music (rehearsal), multichannel sound installation celebrating the legacy of Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid for the Contemporary Art Centre, Cincinnati (US); Requiem for the 21st Century, an immersive Oud-based installation for Opera North (UK); Ma-a aba ud mena gin Ma-a di-di-in, a string quartet for JACK quartet (US); and Apotome, a collaborative project with Counterpoint Studio which was awarded the inaugural Isao Tomita Special Prize at Ars Electronica (AT). Allami holds a BA and Masters in Ethnomusicology from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (UK), and a PhD in experimental Arabic music composition from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Birmingham City University (UK).

About Tashattot

Tashattot (Arabic for dispersion) is an art collective based in Belgium dedicated to supporting visual artists, musicians, film makers and cultural practitioners at large, originally from the SWANA region and currently “dispersed” in Europe. The collective aims at creating opportunities, collaborations, commissions and securing funding for these expatriate artists. The word tashattot and its English equivalents scattering/dispersion, define the collective in both the literal sense of the word (pertaining to the description of the individuals scattered around the world, far from their homelands), as well as its metaphorical sense which relates to the scattering and dispersion of ideas and ways of thinking, as the word in Arabic is oftentimes used to describe the wandering of the thoughts (tashattot al afkar or scattered thoughts). Tashattot is a work in progress and a newly launched collective with a fluid and evolving set of actions. It currently is and will always remain open to new ideas and experiences; continuously building on lessons learned and with practice. The collective strongly believes in the efficiency of open discussions, as the only way to grow and better address SWANA expat artists needs and aspirations, it therefore remains open to reviews, critiques, evaluations or any opinions related to its mechanisms.

Practical info