Jad Azkoul (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: جأد عزقول) is a teacher and concert classical guitarist who was once the student of Abel Carlevaro, and translated much of his work. In 1997, Carlevaro declared that Azkoul was his "genuine representative", as well as being a "great master teaching alongside" him. Azkoul is both a performer and teacher; he is often invited to give masterclasses in various festivals throughout the world.

Critical acclaim

Jad Azkoul was awarded the Order of the Cedar, making him a

Knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, for his musical contributions to the country. Joseph McLellan of the

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

had this to say on the subject of Jad Azkoul's guitar-playing: “Azkoul can make his instrument sing. This is a skill far more important than the ability to whip out thousands of notes per minute accurately and expressively, which he can also do.” On another occasion, McLellan was quoted as saying: "The guitar can be many different kinds of instrument, and Azkoul is a master of all its potentials: the raw power of the amplified guitar used in rock (which is how Azkoul began as a boy in his native Lebanon), the delicacies of music composed for the lute, the fire and energy of Flamenco, the rhythmic complexities of Latin American dances and the experimental techniques of modern composers."

Career

Jad Azkoul has been teaching at the Conservatoire Populaire de Musique, Danse et Théàtre (CPMDT) in Geneva since 1984. Two notable absences were when he lived and taught in Washington DC from 1991 to 1996, and when he was in London on sabbatical leave from 2010 to 2011. Since 2010 he has also been on the music faculty at the

London College of Music London College of Music (LCM) is a music school in London, England. It is one of eight separate schools that make up the University of West London. History LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at ...

. He gives regular summer master classes in France at " Musicalta" in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

and at the "Musicales de Grillon" in

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azkoul, Jad Lebanese guitarists Classical guitarists Lebanese educators Music educators Living people Knights of the National Order of the Cedar Year of birth missing (living people)