Khyam Allami was born in 1981 to an Iraqi family in Damascus, Syria and brought up in London from the age of 9. His passion for music began at a tender age in Syria when he played the role of a young violinist in an art house film (al-Tahaleb directed by Rimon Butrus, 1991) which, once in a blue moon, can still be seen in the middle of the night on a random Syrian satellite channel.
From the Violin his interests moved towards the west and in '95 began to play Bass Guitar followed by Drums with two groups, Ursa and Art of Burning Water. In 2003 he co-founded the record label House of Stairs with fellow musician Jason Carty, which works with independent musicians from London.
From the world of the west his interests once again turned towards the east and in 2004 he began to study the 'Ud (Arabic Lute) and Arabic music theory with the Iraqi maestro Ehsan Emam of the Baghdad 'Ud school.
Currently, Khyam Allami is performing as an 'Ud soloist and is concluding his studies in Ethnomusicology at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. Meanwhile he is working on original compositions, that lean more towards the contemporary as opposed to tradition, under the artistic influence of Frank Zappa, Naseer Shamma, King Crimson, Secret Chiefs 3, Riyad Al-Sunbati, Philip Glass, Jaz Coleman and many others.
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Information on music tracks
What follows is some basic information on the recordings i've added to the player. Hope you enjoy them.
ps: Please excuse the quality of the live recordings.
The Well - Part IV [demo]
A semi-improvisation based on a melody sang by Asha Bhosle, the great indian Bollywood singer. This is part of a work that is in progress for a future project currently under the working name of Cana.
Bedayat Hub - live at SOAS 17th Oct 2007
A composition by my 'Ud teacher, Ehsan Emam in maqam Nahawand.
Maqam Al-Khanabat - live at SOAS 17th Oct 2007
A composed introduction followed by improvisation from the Iraqi Maqam repertoire which is a vocal led genre. Daf played by my dear friend Elizabeth Nott.
Sama'i Huzam al-Sharif Muhi al-Din Haydar - live at SOAS 17th Oct 2007
This is a composition by the great al-Sharif Muhi al-Din Haydart. For some unknown reason, this Sama'i of his is rarely played or recorded. Daf played by my dear friend Elizabeth Nott.
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Last Ursa show at The Peel, May 2003
In case any of you are interested, here is some footage of the band I used to play drums in. Almost 5 years ago but feels like only yesterday... actually that's not true... it feels much longer!!
