AFICIONADO - FLAMENCO MORO
NEW ALBUM COMING OUT IN 03/2023
AFICIONADO is the story of a Moroccan oud player who, when he learned to play his instrument, the oud, was strongly influenced by classical Arabic musical culture, at the expense of the traditional music of his country. It was only when he became intensely involved with the music of his neighbors, flamenco, and became an "aficionado" that he rediscovered the music of his country because of the many similarities!
AFICIONADO is the fulfillment of a dream: since Alaa Zouiten discovered flamenco through the grandmaster Paco de Lucía, he always pursued the dream of combining it with the music of his North African Moorish roots. Since 2015, he traveled to Andalusia to learn flamenco and, above all, to compose an album dedicated to these two cultures. During this long process of learning, sharing and creativity, Alaa became more and more convinced that the fusion of flamenco and Moroccan Moorish music, carried mainly by his oud (laùd), was not only feasible, but more than that: it could be authentic, natural and fascinating! This led him to record an album to which he gave the name: AFICIONADO - Flamenco Moro.
AFICIONADO is an omnipresent celebration of two musical traditions: flamenco and the Moorish-Andalusian music of Morocco. With pieces recently composed by Alaas in Granada, AFICIONADO makes a case for a transcultural sonic environment where styles blend naturally and easily. Flamenco palos are the source of his inspiration and the musical form in which he expresses himself across cultures. Thus, a "fandango" may well pave the way for an ancient Andalusian "nuba" song, a "tango" may sound rhythmically North African and harmonically jazzy, or an Arabic "samai" may lead to a "solea flamenca". The boundaries fall and clear the horizon for a festive musical experience, where the musicians become one with the audience - for the beauty of music!