Ahmed Maher: Maktoub (Final Pre-Tour Concert & Workshop)

Featuring: Ahmed Maher with Aria Award-Winning Accordionist & Educator Anthony Schulz

Date: August 30

Location: Zameen Art House, Vancouver

Schedule: Workshop: 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Doors for Show: 7:00 PM | Concert: 7:30 PM

About the Event

Ahead of his upcoming European and North African album tour this September, Vancouver-based Oud master and composer Ahmed Maher presents his final local performance of Maktoub at Zameen Art House, accompanied by acclaimed Australian accordionist and educator Anthony Schulz.

Before taking the stage, Ahmed and Anthony will lead an intimate, two-hour masterclass exploring Middle Eastern musical composition, modal frameworks, and improvisation.

✦ The Masterclass: Middle Eastern Composition & Maqam (4:00 PM – 6:00 PM)

Designed for musicians, composers, and curious listeners alike, this hands-on workshop offers a practical and conceptual breakdown of Middle Eastern music theory and performance practice.

What we will cover:

• Arabic Maqamat (Scales): Microtonality, modal behavior, and melodic pathways.
• Iqa'at (Rhythms): Traditional rhythmic cycles and phrasing.
• Taqasim (Improvisation): Navigating modal shifts, presence, and real-time musical dialogue.

✦ The Performance: Maktoub (7:30 PM)

Maktoub (“written” or “destined”) is an oriental jazz project that challenges musical forms, genres, and geographic boundaries. Named after a central paradox—that what feels predetermined is continuously rewritten in real time—the project places Arabic maqam-based melodic compositions in dynamic dialogue with jazz form.

Recorded between Cairo and Vancouver with a collective of prolific artists, Maktoub is deeply rooted in the immigrant experience: a process of longing and belonging, continuity and rupture, adaptation and resistance. Composed material provides a frame, while live improvisation opens cracks, shifts, and reconfigurations—allowing memory, skill, presence, and collective listening to reshape the music directly in front of the audience.

Line Up

Ahmed Maher | Oud

Anthony Schulz | Accordion

Geoff Claridge | Bass Clarinet

Conrad Good | Double Bass

Atin Chiraghchi | Percussion

Listen to the album

Buy the Vinyl

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Ticket Options

• Workshop + Concert Access Pass: $75 (Includes 2-hr workshop + admission to the 7:30 PM show)
• Concert Only Ticket: $40 (Admission to 7:30 PM performance only)

Capacity at Zameen Art House is strictly limited. Advanced booking recommended.