Brooklyn Maqam is an organization dedicated to presenting Middle Eastern (in particular, Arabic) music, with the goals of expanding its audience, preserving it as an art form, and building community centered around the music.

THIS MONTH:
Ampelos Trio

Ampelos Trio is a NYC-based project featuring Ayman Asfour (violin), Gabe Lavin (oud), and John Murchison (double bass).

In this new ensemble, the musicians explore composition by combining free improvisation within a narrative arc. Their playing highlights Arabic maqam, not as a conventional approach, but rather as a point of departure for the musicians to experiment with sonic possibilities, dissonances, and repetitiveness.

Ampelos Trio was formed in 2024. Their first release will be in September 2025 with Purplish Records.