Ziad Trabelsi, oud
Francesco Tomasi, lute, theorbo, medieval guitar
Fabrizio Cardosa, colascione and viola da gamba
Simone Pulvano, percussion

Liu’ud is the meeting between two symbols of Western and Middle Eastern musical culture: the oud – one of the most fascinating Arab instruments, played by Ziad Trabelsi, singer and musician of the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio – and the lute, played by skillfull musician Francesco Tomasi.
Fabrizio Cardosa on colascione and Simone Pulvano on percussion accompany the two instruments on a journey through ancient, Middle Eastern and modern atmospheres.

“At a time when meetings are sometimes sought, sometimes avoided – Trabelsi explains – at a time when the meetings between people enrich the daily life, at a time when we negotiate for dialogue and diversity, building bridges but being often unprepared to this news, we forget that all this already existed for some time. And the mediation channels do not only consist of political debates and laws; there is a channel that always has connected people: the music “.

Singer and composer, Ziad Trabelsi was born in Tunis in 1976. His father was an important musician and composer of the Arab Orchestra of the Medina in Tunis. In 1994 he graduated from the Conservatory and in 2002 arrives in Rome where became a member and composer of the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio, a context in which he has always sought an artistic dialogue between the Arab musical tradition and that of the other members of the orchestra, creating eclectic projects acclaimed by audiences and critics. Trabelsi is also a music composer for film and theater, including the film “The Orchestra of Piazza Vittorio” by Agostino Ferrente, “Lettere dal Sahara” by Vittorio De Seta, “I fiori di Kirkuk” by Fariborz Kamkari. Along with Pino Pecorelli he produced and composed the music of “Bab Al Samah” by Francesco Sperandeo, awarded for the best film music at Taormina Film Festival. In 2009 Trabelsi started his musical and research project “Carthage Mosaik” under the artistic production of Peppe d’Argenzio and Pino Pecorelli and two years later he released “Contemporary Maghreb”. In 2014 he created the project “Arabesk Group” with musicians from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Palestine and Iraq, a real journey in the Arab tradition and its genres. In 2015 he wrote the music for the film “Pizza e Datteri” by Fairouk Faribouz. In the same year he worked along with Paolo Rocca, in the “Romarabeat” project, a musical mix of Arab and Balkan traditions. He is currently engaged in the opening of the first school of oud in Rome.

Fabrizio Cardosa has completed his main musical studies at the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in Rome, graduating in composition, choral music and choral conducting, and in electronic music. He also studied viola da gamba, an instrument with which he ranges from the Renaissance repertoire to the encounter among different traditions. The different instruments he plays in concerts are copies of ancient originals, that he reconstructs by himself. He has composed instrumental and electronic music tracks as well as being the author of musical-theater performances: “Cronopios, famas e speranze”(for vocalists, instruments and actors, 1995); “L’Hospitale de’ pazzi incurabili” (for eight vocalists and one actor, 1999); “Volatili Insetti e Pennuti” (for boys’ choirs); “Le città invisibili” (for orchestra, vocalists and actors, 2001); “TRE per OTTO” (for orchestra, soloists and choirs, 2004); “Rispettive Identità” (for soloists and orchestra, 2011); “La vera fiaba” (for choirs and instruments, 2012). In 1984 he founded the “Kammerton vocal ensemble”, a group engaged in a contemporary vocal music project. He played with Moni Ovadia in “Cantavamo,cantiamo, canteremo!” where he also was the arranger. He directed musicals such as “The Full Monty” (Italian version directed by Gigi Proietti) which debuted on December 2001 and “Vacanze Romane” (which debuted at Teatro Sistina in Rome in 2004) with Serena Autieri and Massimo Ghini and directed by Pietro Garinei. He was also a teacher at the Conservatories in Frosinone and Pescara.

Francesco Tomasi began his musical studies with classical guitar. His passion for early music led him later to devote himself to the lute, studying with Mark Fish and Andrea Damiani and completing his studies at Conservatorio Santa Cecilia in Rome. In 2012 he concluded a Master in lute specializing in baroque guitar and theorbo with Rolf Lislevand at the Musik Hochschule in Trossingen. He also attended several international masterclasses with Paul O’Dette, Jakob Lindberg and Nigel North. He held many concerts, thanks to several collaborations with early music ensembles such as “Concerto Romano” directed by Maestro Alessandro Quarta, “Arte Musica”, directed by Francesco Cera, “Swiss Baroque Soloists”, “Pera ensemble”, “Cappella Gabetta”, “La Malaspina”, “La Selva”, “Cappella Tiberina”, “Ricercare antico”, “Anfione ensemble”, directed by Andrea Damiani, with which he performed at important music festivals in Italy and abroad. In 2009 he participated in the event “Ponti Sonori”, organized by Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and collaborated with the ensemble “La Selva” to record a cd called “Alla luna” with music by Biagio Marini. In 2010 Tomasi joined the European Union Baroque Orchestra (EUBO), with which he held concerts in several European countries including Luxembourg, France, Portugal, Germany, Poland, Belgium. In the same year, with his ensemble “Malaspina”, he won the Jury Prize at the early music competition “Biagio Marini” in Neuburg an der Donau (Germany). With “Cappella Tiberina” ensemble he recorded the XII Concertos for Flute by Mancini for the label Brilliant Classics and with “Concerto Romano” the cd “Luther in Rom” for the label Christophorus. He collaborated with radio stations such as Radio Vaticana, WDR (Germany), ORF (Austria) and TV channels like RAI International. He also works in the accompaniment of singers and instrumentalists and as a lute, theorbo and Spanish guitar solo player.

Simone Pulvano began the study of Arab percussion (darbuka, riq, sagat, bendir etc.) with Egyptian musician Mohammed Abdalla; then he deepened it through seminars and workshops with internationally renowned musicians such as Hossam Ramzy, Jamal Ouassini (conductor of the Arab-Andalusian Orchestra in Tangier), Zohar Fresco, Karim Nagi, Helm, and making several trips to the Middle East and North Africa. In 2004 he graduated in history of Arab philosophy from La Sapienza University in Rome. He collaborated with Arab music group Ons, with Greek music ensemble Mesogea, with Moroccan musician and composer Jamal Ouassini, with whom has organized seminars devoted to Arab music. Other collaborations include Etruria Criminale Banda, Andrea Rivera, I Circolabili, Handala, Milagro Acustico, Nour Eddine, Pejman Tadayon.

[photo: Ilaria Costanzo]