Frigya is the 3rd album of the Tunisian percussionist Imed Alibi and the fruit of a collaboration with the electronic music producer Khalil Hentati. Sharing a common passion for North African rhythms and of mezwed and bedoui themes and sounds, the duo made an inventory of it. A real work of archiving, which allowed them to draw from it a new modern interpretation, with electronic accents.
Frigya, which means "Africa" in ancient Tunisian dialect, is the result of several years of research and creation within the Silo, an association working to promote world and traditional music in the Occitanie region. This album is an exploration of the sounds of Africa and the Tunisian rhythms inherited from this land; a link between the Arab and African worlds; a transmission of intergenerational influences, in a common spirit of openness.
Imed Alibi is a Tunisian percussionist and composer. Introduced to percussion at an early age in popular and classical orchestras in North Africa and the Middle East, Imed Alibi played along many musicians, some of whom have marked their time: Rachid Taha, Les Boukakes, Safy Boutella, Mamdouh Bahri, Ghalia Benali, Kel Assouf, Watcha Clan, Natasha Atlas, Michel Marre, Emel Mathlouthi… In addition to his musical talents, Imed Alibi has been directing the Carthage International Festival (Tunisia) since 2020, an annual festival of music, theater and dance founded in 1964, and is also a consultant for the Visa for music festival in Morocco and Babel Med in Marseille. He is also involved in humanitarian and social actions such as workshops in refugee camps in Jordan and Bethlehem in
Palestine, the Darb Ahmar school in Cairo (Egypt) and many other actions in Tunisia and in the South of France.
Khalil Hentati is a composer and producer of electronic and fusion music. He began his career in Tunisia under the pseudonym "EPI ''with an electronic project mixing club and traditional music. He has composed music for dance shows, short films, participated in tours and collaborated with different musicians and projects such as : DHAMMA, Seydou Boro, Zied Zouari,Sofia Ellequiari, Opera Reims, Frigya, Walead Ben Salim, Ahmed Khemis, Imed Alibi, Michel Marre…
In 2017 he founded DHAMMA with Sacha Loup (Gum Club) In 2017 he became a member of N3rdistan until today. In 2020 he joined the label Shouka as artistic director and project developer.