The Syrian virtuoso is seen as one of the most innovative qanun performers in the Arab world. It was at the Guildhall School of Music in London that Chhadeh honed his skills on this complex instrument that dates back to the 10th century. He re-designed it by adding an octave, which gave the qanun greater tonal range.
The Damascus-born artist has since been reworking the instrument’s vast traditional repertory. These include works by Andalusian, Turkish, Azerbaijani and, of course, Syrian composers. But Chhadeh has not hesitated to re-interpret works by Western classical musicians in a dialogue with artists and audiences around the world. This includes a collaboration on Andrew Cronshaw’s August 2004 CD “Ochre”