Ayman Asfour

Ayman Asfour is an Egyptian violinist, composer, and improviser based in New York. He performs a diverse musical repertoire ranging from Egyptian folk to free improvisation.  

Asfour’s first solo album, Sardy Fardy (Odd Narrative), grew out of a single idea: to write melodies inspired by Egyptian musical heritage, set inside a rhythmic framework built on odd meters (rhythms whose basic count is an odd number). The captivating result: familiar melodies molded into unfamiliar rhythmic shapes. Each composition explores how this friction between melody and rhythm creates unexpected potential for experimentation and new sounds.

Asfour is also a founding member of The Handover with Aly Eissa (oud) and Jonas Cambien (keyboards) and Ampelos Trio with Gabe Lavin (oud) and John Murchison (double bass).