Souvenance : music for oud, quartet and string orchestra

"De politiske uroligheder i Brahems hjemland, Tunesien, har ligget som en skygge over projektet, og det forstås tydeligt ud fra musikkens alvorstunge grundstemning. Man gribes af den vilje til udtryk, der er så tindrende klart til stede, og hvor fint de medvirkende musikere griber og favner hinanden. Hertil kommer at Brahems lidenskabelige oud-spil samtidig besidder en skrøbelighed, der rammer lige i hjertekulen ... Stor musik, der maner til refleksion".

"A lesson in subtlety and restraint ... This album doesn't immediately stand out as Arabic; instead, it feels like Western contemporary classical music, written and played by jazz musicians. Or perhaps vice versa - or more accurately, both at the same time. It seems to owe some influence to Glass and Miles Davis during his smooth period, but Brahem's compositions are all his own. The Tunisian core of his writing becomes apparent slowly, but is indeed all-encompassing, haerd in an unexpected semitone, an unfamiliar glissando or the unmistakable swoop of an Arabic melody ... An impressive and intelligent work, a credit to Anouar Brahem as a composer and both the quartet and the orchestra as musicians. A perfect combination of the classical styles of North Africa, Europe and Africa-America".