Letters from Iraq expresses the love and pain of lives lived by the people of war-torn Iraq. Actual mailed letters and their stories are transposed into eight gripping programmatic compositions by Iraqi-American composer and oud player, Rahim AlHaj with string quintet (2 violins, viola, cello, contrabass) and percussion. He says, “Music can make us laugh, make us cry, make us march into war. I want to make music to make us realize peace.” These recordings are of deep emotion and great beauty, melding mastery of Iraqi and Western classical genres alike to form something entirely new.
supported by 6 fans who also own “Letters from Iraq: Oud and String Quintet”
I love these women. the voices mesh together perfectly; also the world music is exceptional. I have all of their albums and they're all excellent. Give them a listen. Steve Lake
Beautiful, hypnotic music from this Armenian oud player captures the instrument's delicacy in a series of heart-stirring songs. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 25, 2016