Photo: Sachyn Mital
Maqām Records, a newly launched label from trumpeter, composer, santur player and vocalist Amir ElSaffar, opens its doors with a release of rare weight: Maqam Al-Ira, the first recording in over two decades from legendary Iraqi singer Hamid Al-Saadi, considered the only living master of the complete Iraqi Maqam repertoire. Out later this year, Maqam Al-Iraq brings together four long-form maqams, each followed by a pesteh, a rhythmic, communal counterpart. The album includes ‘Maqam Qazzaz’, previously unrecorded, and two new maqams composed by Al-Saadi himself, marking the first additions to the tradition in over a hundred years. As both singer and custodian of this oral lineage, Al-Saadi channels the music’s intricate ornamentation and deep emotional pull with a remarkable clarity.
Born in Baghdad in 1958, Al-Saadi came of age during a cultural renaissance where the maqam was still heard in cafés and private homes. By his twenties, he had memorized all 56 canonical maqams, a feat that earned him the blessing of two of Iraq’s greatest 20th-century masters, Yusuf Omar and Mohammed Al-Gubbanchi. But following the 1991 Gulf War and years of devastating U.S.-imposed sanctions that brought Iraq’s economy and everyday life to a standstill, Al-Saadi left the country, eventually settling in Brooklyn via London. It was in London that ElSaffar first approached him as a student. The bond that followed, as an artist, apprentice, and now collaborators, anchors this release. Recorded with ElSaffar’s Safaafir ensemble (including Dena El Saffar and Tim Moore), the album is both document and transmission, the sound of a tradition surviving displacement and violence, and continuing forward in new hands.
Drawn from centuries-old Iraqi traditions, Maqām itself refers to a system of melodic modes found across the Middle East and Central Asia. The Iraqi form is one of its most ornate and demanding variants, and was inscribed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Maqam Al-Iraq sits at the crossroads of ancient history and contemporary revival, grounding ElSaffar’s vision for Maqām Records.
Maqam Al-Iraq is out on July 18th and two singles are now available, the spacious and striking opener ‘Maqam Al-Iraq / Dar al-Fikir wa al Amjad’ and the freshly released ‘Habibi Rah wa Ma Janeh’, which highlights the bright, upbeat pesteh form. Listen to both below.
