Salah Ammo & Peter Gabis
The project was founded in 2013, when Salah Ammo and Peter Gabis met in Vienna. The two musicians are
working minimalistic and sensitive, the voice is only accompanied by the Bouzouk (a Syrian long-neck lute)
and percussion. The unusual instrumentation which is used by Peter Gabis in parts of the songs enforces
the emotional dimension. Besides classical oriental instruments he also plays Hang, gongs, singing bowls
and other instruments from all over the world. Salah Ammo contributes his overlapping and broad sense of
oriental music. Mixed with Peter Gabis experience in Jazz, World music and overtone singing they create
unusual soundscapes and moods. The compositions reflect the openness of the musicians, to combine
different styles of many cultures, and to interpret them in a new way. The lyrics go deep, and even when
the listeners don’t understand the language, the emotion is transported very well.
Salah Ammo lives in Vienna since 2012 because of the situation in his home country Syria. Everything he
brought from there was his Bouzouk (a Lute with a long neck), his music, his passion and his musical
dream. The touching voice of Salah Ammo is accompanied by the extraordinary and sensitive
instrumentation and the overtone-singing of Peter Gabis. The compositions are in Kurdish and Arabic and
provide a space for the two musicians for their touching and versatile musical communication. In 2014 the
Duo was in the Finale of the ‘Austrian World Music Award’. Their recent CD „Assi“ was nominated for the
Best list of the renowned ‘Preis der deutschenSchallplattenkritik’.
Salah Ammo
Before moving to Damascus to study at the Higher Institute of Music, Salah Ammo lived and grew up in the
north of Syria, where Kurds, Arabs, Syrians, Armenians and Assyrians used to live together for thousands of
years. He was influenced by the music of these people and their cultures, and gained the experience to
present it, especially with his group JOUSSOUR (in English: “Bridges”) which is considered one of the most
important bands presented these people’s music. Due to the situation in Syria the musicians of this
project spread into all parts of the world. Salah worked at the Music Academy in Homs as a teacher and
played in many different musical settings.
http://salahammo.com
Peter Gabis
Peter Gabis is jazz-drummer, percussionist and overtone-singer. He studied jazz drums in Vienna and New
York. He is well known as a solid sideman in the vibrant Viennese jazz-scene, played countless concerts
and tours in Europe, USA, Australia and Africa. In the past years he focused on ethnic music, meditative
soundscapes and overtone singing. Besides about 40 CD productions where he is responsible for a strong
rhythmic backbone, he released his solo CD „Rhythms of Silence“ in 2011, with his own compositions for
percussion and voice. He teaches jazz drums at the Vienna Conservatory and also gives workshops for
Sound-Massage and overtone singing.
http://www.petergabis.com
and percussion. The unusual instrumentation which is used by Peter Gabis in parts of the songs enforces
the emotional dimension. Besides classical oriental instruments he also plays Hang, gongs, singing bowls
and other instruments from all over the world. Salah Ammo contributes his overlapping and broad sense of
oriental music. Mixed with Peter Gabis experience in Jazz, World music and overtone singing they create
unusual soundscapes and moods. The compositions reflect the openness of the musicians, to combine
different styles of many cultures, and to interpret them in a new way. The lyrics go deep, and even when
the listeners don’t understand the language, the emotion is transported very well.
Salah Ammo lives in Vienna since 2012 because of the situation in his home country Syria. Everything he
brought from there was his Bouzouk (a Lute with a long neck), his music, his passion and his musical
dream. The touching voice of Salah Ammo is accompanied by the extraordinary and sensitive
instrumentation and the overtone-singing of Peter Gabis. The compositions are in Kurdish and Arabic and
provide a space for the two musicians for their touching and versatile musical communication. In 2014 the
Duo was in the Finale of the ‘Austrian World Music Award’. Their recent CD „Assi“ was nominated for the
Best list of the renowned ‘Preis der deutschenSchallplattenkritik’.
Salah Ammo
Before moving to Damascus to study at the Higher Institute of Music, Salah Ammo lived and grew up in the
north of Syria, where Kurds, Arabs, Syrians, Armenians and Assyrians used to live together for thousands of
years. He was influenced by the music of these people and their cultures, and gained the experience to
present it, especially with his group JOUSSOUR (in English: “Bridges”) which is considered one of the most
important bands presented these people’s music. Due to the situation in Syria the musicians of this
project spread into all parts of the world. Salah worked at the Music Academy in Homs as a teacher and
played in many different musical settings.
http://salahammo.com
Peter Gabis
Peter Gabis is jazz-drummer, percussionist and overtone-singer. He studied jazz drums in Vienna and New
York. He is well known as a solid sideman in the vibrant Viennese jazz-scene, played countless concerts
and tours in Europe, USA, Australia and Africa. In the past years he focused on ethnic music, meditative
soundscapes and overtone singing. Besides about 40 CD productions where he is responsible for a strong
rhythmic backbone, he released his solo CD „Rhythms of Silence“ in 2011, with his own compositions for
percussion and voice. He teaches jazz drums at the Vienna Conservatory and also gives workshops for
Sound-Massage and overtone singing.
http://www.petergabis.com
Friday, November 27th, 2015, 21.30
Salah Ammo & Peter Gabis
Oriental World Music-Duo
