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The Spanish viola da gamba player, Fahmi Alqhai, was born in Seville from a Syrian father and Palestinian mother, and spent his first 11 years of life in Syria where he began his musical training at an early age. Later in Spain he studied by himself and in 1994 joined the Conservatorio Superior de Sevilla Manuel Castillo to study the viola da gamba with Ventura Rico. He continued his training at the prestigious schools Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (Basel) and Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana (Lugano) guided by teachers Paolo Pandolfo and Vittorio Ghielmi respectively. Alongside his musical studies he obtained the Bachelor of Dentistry from the University of Seville.
Already in 1998 Fahmi Alqhai began his solo career specializing in the German repertoire for the viola da gamba. In 2004 he, along with Alberto Martínez Molina, recorded the sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord by J.S. Bach for the Arsis label. This recording has received exellent critical acclaim by both the public and the press.
Fahmi Alqhai is co-founder, with soprano Mariví Blasco, and director of the Accademia del Piacere ensemble, specializing in the interpretation of the musical repertoire of the Italian Seicento. He is the founder with his brother Rami Alqhai of Alqhai & Alqhai label that has produced the album “Le Lacrime di Eros” - Accademia first CD, “Les du ciel et Violes de l’enfer” dedicated to the music of Marin Marais and Antoine Forqueray, and has just released the third CD of the ensemble, “Amori di Marte”.
Despite his young age, Fahmi Alqhai is sought-after by the most important early chamber music ensembles both national and international. His dizzying career as a player has taken him to numerous and famous groups; nowadays he usually works with Hespèrion XXI (Director: Jordi Savall) and Il Suonar Parlante (Director: Vittorio Ghielmi); he is founding member of More Hispano (Vicente Parrilla). He offers regular concerts throughout Europe, Japan, USA and Latin America. As a soloist he has performed with orchestras such as Spain’s National Orchestra, Real Filharmonia de Galicia, Ensemble Vocal de Lausanne (Director: Michel Corboz), Sevilla Baroque Orchestra and Al Ayre Spanish, among others. Since 2009 he is artistic director of FEMAS, Early Music Festival Sevilla.
Fahmi Alqhai has made numerous recordings for labels (Alia Vox, Glossa, Winter & Winter, Tactus, Arsis, Enchiriadis, etc..), as well as television and radio broadcasts around the world.
In addition to early music, Fahmi Alqhai has worked as a soloist in performances of flamenco at the Bienal de Flamenco de Sevilla and also makes forays into the field of contemporary music and Jazz. |
