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Concert by Yacine & The Oriental Groove
From April 01, 2013 until April 10, 2013
On Wednesday, April 10, Yacine & The Oriental Groove will be presenting their new album, "L'estima venç la Selvatgia" (Love Conquers Savagery), with a performance at the Casa Árabe Auditorium in Madrid.
Yacine Belhacene Benet, the son of an Algerian father and Spanish mother, was the leader of Cheb Balowski, a mythical “mestizo Arab” sound band from Barcelona at the turn of the twenty-first century. The natural continuation of that project was Nour, a group which also mixed sounds from the Mediterranean. Both groups went on extensive tours around Europe, as well as making forays into Arab countries.
Yacine reinvented himself yet again with Yacine & the Oriental Groove, a Mediterranean combo led by Yannis Papaioanou, an oud player from Greece residing in Barcelona. Together they created “Parabólic” in the year of 2011, an album that could be defined as “Oriental rock.” Foreseeing uprisings and movements on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, with a repertoire of original songs in Arabic, French and other languages, passed through the filter of an very powerful urban sound.
The new work by Yacine & the Oriental Groove, which is called “L'estima venç la Selvatgia” (“Love Conquers Savagery”), continues and moves forward along the same lines. With the core of the Oriental Groove consolidated and turned into an excellent band, this album, produced thanks to crowdfunding, includes a more elaborate production, with collaborations by Algerian singer Amel Zen and a string quartet
.
Times change, and Yacine and his musicians have grown up and matured. These are no longer times of empty discourse. They are times fore explaining their own personal reality through original songs like “Ténéré,” which speaks about love and war, or “Atini Boussa” (“Give Me a Kiss”), which gives a positive message in difficult times. They have also made a version of “Ya Dzaye,” by Algerian author Ahmed Wahbi, one of the precursors of popular Algerian songs from the 1960’s. In this case, the sound of the old songs lies somewhere between the chaabi music of Algiers and rumba from Barcelona, with a strong rhythmic base, as if it were a fanfare from the Balkans.
In their presentation at Casa Árabe, using an acoustic format, Yacine & the Oriental Groove will be highlighting the more traditional part of their work: chaabi, raï and gnawa, with a touch of the group’s particular multicultural vision, with members who are Algerian, Greek, Syrian and Spanish. Great musicians who are knowledgeable of both tradition and the latest trends in sound.
The concert will begin at 8:00 p.m. General entrance tickets cost 5 euros, or 4 euros for people who are officially unemployed, students of the Casa Árabe Language Center and the Youth Card. You must demonstrate you hold any of the aforementioned statuses using the proper document to get the discount. You may not receive more than one discount.
Advanced sales on the dates of April 9 and 10, from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Casa Árabe headquarters. The tickets which have not been sold in advance may be purchased one hour before the concert at the door of the Casa Árabe Auditorium.
YACINE BELAHCENE BENET (Singer)
Born in Padua, Italy, he is the son of an Algerian father and Spanish mother. He lived in Algiers until he was 12, when he moved to Barcelona. From an early age, he combined his studies with leading mythical groups in Barcelona’s mestizo music movement, including Cheb Balowski and Nour, before forming Yacine & the Oriental Groove.
YANNIS PAPAIOANNOU (electric and acoustic oud, musical direction)
An Arabic oud player and composer from Greece residing in Barcelona, he is a role model in performing Mediterranean music. He has formed part of the Arab Orchestra of Barcelona and the group 08001, as well as having worked with Omar Faruk, Haig Yazdjan, Lucrecia and Yurdal.
OMAR KATTAN (percussion)
A percussionist of amazing versatility, with his Syrian roots, he carries the art of Arab percussion to the deepest expression of its origin. Alongside his maternal uncle, Javier Marco, a jazz composer, he was introduced to the great world of experimental jazz, world music and flamenco.
ANIOL LOPES DE MORAGAS (percussion)
Having participated in numerous Egyptian and folkloric dance festivals as a solo performer, he travels each year to Turkey to perfect his darbouka technique and movements. He is a member of groups such as Barbod, Asíkides, Möondo, La Banda del Surdo and Residual Gurús, touring with the shows they put on throughout all of Spain and Europe.
OSCAR FERRET (keyboards)
A jazz keyboard artist, he is also the director of the jam sessions which are organized each Thursday at La Cava del Retiro (Sitges, Barcelona), where it is common to see musicians meeting up from Barcelona, New York, Buenos Aires, Lisbon, Amsterdam, etc. He is also the keyboard artist who regularly accompanies singer Amparo Sánchez (Amparanoia).
Yacine reinvented himself yet again with Yacine & the Oriental Groove, a Mediterranean combo led by Yannis Papaioanou, an oud player from Greece residing in Barcelona. Together they created “Parabólic” in the year of 2011, an album that could be defined as “Oriental rock.” Foreseeing uprisings and movements on the southern shores of the Mediterranean, with a repertoire of original songs in Arabic, French and other languages, passed through the filter of an very powerful urban sound.
The new work by Yacine & the Oriental Groove, which is called “L'estima venç la Selvatgia” (“Love Conquers Savagery”), continues and moves forward along the same lines. With the core of the Oriental Groove consolidated and turned into an excellent band, this album, produced thanks to crowdfunding, includes a more elaborate production, with collaborations by Algerian singer Amel Zen and a string quartet
.
Times change, and Yacine and his musicians have grown up and matured. These are no longer times of empty discourse. They are times fore explaining their own personal reality through original songs like “Ténéré,” which speaks about love and war, or “Atini Boussa” (“Give Me a Kiss”), which gives a positive message in difficult times. They have also made a version of “Ya Dzaye,” by Algerian author Ahmed Wahbi, one of the precursors of popular Algerian songs from the 1960’s. In this case, the sound of the old songs lies somewhere between the chaabi music of Algiers and rumba from Barcelona, with a strong rhythmic base, as if it were a fanfare from the Balkans.
In their presentation at Casa Árabe, using an acoustic format, Yacine & the Oriental Groove will be highlighting the more traditional part of their work: chaabi, raï and gnawa, with a touch of the group’s particular multicultural vision, with members who are Algerian, Greek, Syrian and Spanish. Great musicians who are knowledgeable of both tradition and the latest trends in sound.
The concert will begin at 8:00 p.m. General entrance tickets cost 5 euros, or 4 euros for people who are officially unemployed, students of the Casa Árabe Language Center and the Youth Card. You must demonstrate you hold any of the aforementioned statuses using the proper document to get the discount. You may not receive more than one discount.
Advanced sales on the dates of April 9 and 10, from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Casa Árabe headquarters. The tickets which have not been sold in advance may be purchased one hour before the concert at the door of the Casa Árabe Auditorium.
YACINE BELAHCENE BENET (Singer)
Born in Padua, Italy, he is the son of an Algerian father and Spanish mother. He lived in Algiers until he was 12, when he moved to Barcelona. From an early age, he combined his studies with leading mythical groups in Barcelona’s mestizo music movement, including Cheb Balowski and Nour, before forming Yacine & the Oriental Groove.
YANNIS PAPAIOANNOU (electric and acoustic oud, musical direction)
An Arabic oud player and composer from Greece residing in Barcelona, he is a role model in performing Mediterranean music. He has formed part of the Arab Orchestra of Barcelona and the group 08001, as well as having worked with Omar Faruk, Haig Yazdjan, Lucrecia and Yurdal.
OMAR KATTAN (percussion)
A percussionist of amazing versatility, with his Syrian roots, he carries the art of Arab percussion to the deepest expression of its origin. Alongside his maternal uncle, Javier Marco, a jazz composer, he was introduced to the great world of experimental jazz, world music and flamenco.
ANIOL LOPES DE MORAGAS (percussion)
Having participated in numerous Egyptian and folkloric dance festivals as a solo performer, he travels each year to Turkey to perfect his darbouka technique and movements. He is a member of groups such as Barbod, Asíkides, Möondo, La Banda del Surdo and Residual Gurús, touring with the shows they put on throughout all of Spain and Europe.
OSCAR FERRET (keyboards)
A jazz keyboard artist, he is also the director of the jam sessions which are organized each Thursday at La Cava del Retiro (Sitges, Barcelona), where it is common to see musicians meeting up from Barcelona, New York, Buenos Aires, Lisbon, Amsterdam, etc. He is also the keyboard artist who regularly accompanies singer Amparo Sánchez (Amparanoia).
