Arts & Life

Anouar Brahem and the Art of the Oud

By Liane Hansen

Published November 16, 2002 at 11:00 PM CST

In Anouar Brahem's native Tunisia, the oud is known today mainly in the context of loud and large ensembles that leave it all but buried in a dervish of sound. But Brahem highlights the stringed instrument in a delicate, often introspective context. On his new CD Le pas du chat noir, the oud is part of an unlikely trio including piano and accordion. He talks with NPR's Liane Hansen.

Arts & Life

Liane Hansen

Liane Hansen has been the host of NPR's award-winning Weekend Edition Sunday for 20 years. She brings to her position an extensive background in broadcast journalism, including work as a radio producer, reporter, and on-air host at both the local and national level. The program has covered such breaking news stories as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the capture of Saddam Hussein, the deaths of Princess Diana and John F. Kennedy, Jr., and the Columbia shuttle tragedy. In 2004, Liane was granted an exclusive interview with former weapons inspector David Kay prior to his report on the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The show also won the James Beard award for best radio program on food for a report on SPAM.