Edinburgh International Festival 2026: Sounds of Ihsane – The Hub, Edinburgh

Viola d’amore: Jasser Haj Youssef

Piano: Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven

Percussion: Gabriele Miracle Bragantini

Vocals: Fadia Tomb El-Hage & Mohammed El Arabi Serghin

Led by Tunisian viola d’amore player and composer Jasser Haj Youssef, who has become an EIF regular, Sounds of Ihsane is a one night only concert that brings together the musical team behind another EIF production, Ihsane.

In addition to Youssef, Sounds of Ihsane features Palestinian oud virtuoso Nizar Rohana, Italian percussionist Gabriele Miracle Bragintini, and the vocal talents of Fadia Tomb El Hage and Mohammed El Arabi Serghini. The ensemble is also the musical team behind Ihsane, a dance production that pays tribute to a gay Moroccan man murdered in Belgium, exploring cycles of violence while searching for the possibility of connection when grief can no longer be put into words.

Paying homage to Middle Eastern and North African musical traditions, this is the first time the music of Ihsane has been presented in concert form. As the musicians take their seats on stage, dressed in simple yet elegant black, the music immediately transports the audience to places that, for many of us, may be unfamiliar, while others may recognise something that feels closer to home.

The music itself is difficult to describe, but one thing is strikingly clear: there is never a single emotion behind any melody. Joy, sorrow, loneliness and something harder to name seem to coexist within the music. Its richness is remarkable. Even without captions for the lyrics, the depth of emotion comes through in the musicians’ passionate playing and their ability to tell a story through sound alone.

Although Youssef has become a regular presence at the EIF, his skill remains astonishing. He commands the space with remarkable ease, while his use of the Baroque viola d’amore’s sympathetic strings produces a sound that is unmistakably its own. Yet the sounds he draws from the instrument remain astonishing, revealing a range that is difficult to imagine from the instrument alone.

Peaceful yet deeply emotional, the evening feels like a glimpse into the emotional journey that Ihsane might offer.

Runs until 20 August 2026 | Image: Contributed