He is undoubtedly the oud player most frequently invited to perform at Cully Jazz. With his contemporary approach, buzzing with myriad influences, Anouar Brahem reimagines the ancestral traditions of his instrument like no other, elevating it to a register that knows no boundaries. His new project, After the Last Sky, takes its title from a verse by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish: “Where should the birds fly after the last sky?” To explore this metaphysical question, he has brought together three renowned instrumentalists for a series of delicate chamber pieces featuring oud, cello, piano, and double bass.

Colin Vallon does not indulge in demonstrative virtuosity or powerful playing, even though he has mastered both. He combines a profound sense of restraint with an uncommon melodic intensity. The sounds of his prepared piano, whether lyrical or grating, melodious or abstract, lend his playing a strange and wild beauty that seems to open up new territories. Combining personal compositions and improvised passages, his performances offer a rhythmic and fluid blend of colours and textures, woven around deceptively naive melodies.