Ayman Jarjour’s life has been bound up with the country of Syria. He made his recital debut in Damascus and later gave the Syrian premiere of Joaquín Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez. He also served on the faculty of the Syrian capital’s best music school. He may not be able to do much about the sectarian civil war that has ripped the nation apart for most of this decade, but he is doing something for the country’s refugees this week. His concert this Thursday at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary is free to attend, but he’ll take donations to benefit Syrian children who have been forced to flee their homeland by the violence there.
Since so much guitar music is Spanish, it makes sense for an aspiring classical guitarist to receive an education in Spain as Jarjour did. It’s no wonder that much of his recital program is made up of Spanish music such as the second of Enrique Granados’ Danzas españolas and Francisco Tárrega’s Jota, and he dips into Latin America as well with Astor Piazzolla’s Verano Porteño and Antonio Lauro’s Valses venezolanos. However, the piece of music closest to him will likely be his own Variations on a Syrian Tune. You may not know that Syria has a venerable tradition of chanting from its Christian churches. Now’s the time to learn.
Ayman Jarjour performs at 7:30pm Thu at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2001 W Seminary Dr, FW. Admission is free. Call 817-737-8328.
