Aaron Spevack studied Jazz performance and world music at the New England Conservatory of Music, before his studies of ethnomusicology–particularly Turkish Sufi music–led him to pursuing a PhD in Islamic Intellectual History .
Mawlid with Noor Ensemble at Tufts 2018
Short Reel with Selections from Aaron Spevack’s Performance Practice (longer versions further down the page):
Among the many masters of Jazz, Turkish, and (Western) Classical music with whom he studied are George Russell, Feridun Ozgoren, J.R. Montrose, Bob Labaree, and Bob Moses. He has performed as a guitarist with several bands throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, performing jazz, hip hop, R&B, funk, rock, and folk. Notably, the award-winning live band Hip hop phenomenon Down Low Connection brought Spevack’s guitar stylings and compositional viision to audiences across the North East
He also occasionally performs on middle eastern percussion (daff, bendir, darbouka, etc.) with various Moroccan and Turkish Sufi groups (nasheeds, qasidas, and ilahis).
Sadaqa Sounds: “Music that moves you to action”
His most recent project is an album that combines music with meaning that intends to move the listener to action, thereby changing the state of listener and society. It combines western instrumentation and musical styles with translations of Arabic Sufi lyrics as well as original lyrical interpretations of Sufi teachings.
Listen to the pre-release version of the album here:
You can learn more about it on Facebook: Click here!
Longer Clips of Performances:
Boston’s Noor Ensemble:
As an occasional guest performer with the Noor Ensemble, Spevack occasionally plays percussion or guitar with this much-loved Boston favorite.
New Orleans Sacred Music Festival (2012):