Alula & Didier Malherbe

In the heart of winter, VLA turns to the sun, and welcomes a large-scale band: ALULA is a sextet, made up of two saxophonists, a guitarist, a bassist, a drummer and a singer. Airy atmospheres, improvisations and grooves intermingle, always preserving a melodic momentum carried by Swala Emati's deep, powerful and sensual voice. 
As a special guest, the jazz band welcomes Didier Malherbe, poet and multi-talented musician from the group Hadouk, who plays a variety of ethnic instruments, including the Laotian khên, the Chinese hulusi and the doudouk, an oboe of Armenian origin, his instrument of choice.
Attached more to European and African jazz, each track explores a singular universe, around a chorus carried mainly by an instrument and taken up by Swala Emati's warm alto voice. The vocals unfold lively melodies, at times flamenco or jazzy, tapering vocals or lullabies. The titles of the tracks evoke the world, from the initiation rites of Gabon to the marine sanctuaries of the Philippines, from a Cambodian temple to the salt plains of Ethiopia, a voyage around the globe that concludes with an ode to love.