Never the Same Melody Twice with Akram Abdulfattah - Steve Pretty On The Origin of the Pieces | Lyssna här

How much can you change a melody before it becomes something else? Palestinian-American violinist and composer Akram Abdulfattah joins me to explore a tradition in which variation is part of learning the tune from the start.

Recorded at WOMEX in Finland in 2025, this conversation comes with plenty of violin demonstrations. Akram explains why a maqam is more than a scale, introduces the expressive possibilities between familiar notes, and shows how a phrase can take a different route each time it is played.

His six-string violin extends into an unusually low register. We hear what those extra strings make possible, how they change the physical experience of playing, and why the instrument can sound so close to a human voice. There is an original solo performance along the way.

We also talk about learning musical rules and finding freedom within them, Arabic roots and wider influences, and the pleasure of hearing a familiar melody change without losing its identity.

Towards the end, Akram reflects on music, family and his Palestinian-American identity, before we discuss the challenges of making a living as a musician and helping audiences discover something unfamiliar.

IN THIS EPISODE

00:00 – Welcome to Origin

00:26 – Introducing Akram Abdulfattah

02:33 – Live at WOMEX 2025

03:11 – Meet Akram

04:28 – Arabic roots, many influences

06:33 – Maqam: more than a scale

08:19 – Tarab and musical feeling

09:07 – The notes between the notes

10:29 – Hearing microtones on violin

16:49 – Tradition and improvisation

19:18 – Never the same melody twice