THE WORLD'S BEST NEW MUSIC

daughter of Syrian-born parents, who were painters, Naïssam Jalal is a Paris-based flautist, composer and bandleader whose work bridges jazz, Middle Eastern traditions and political expression. Raised in France, she initially trained in classical music before turning toward rap, jazz and improvised forms, touring widely in various guises before deepening her studies in Cairo, where she immersed herself in Arabic maqam and traditional flute techniques.​

Her career has been marked by a series of conceptually driven projects, often exploring themes of exile, identity and freedom. Albums such as Osloob Hayati (2015) and Quest of the Invisible (2019) established her as a distinctive voice, while later works, including Almot Wala Almazala (“Death Before Humiliation”) (2026) foregrounded her engagement with the Syrian uprising and broader questions of resistance.

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​Although shaped through a contemporary and deeply personal lens, the music of Landscapes of Eternity is rooted in the language of Indian classical music. Traveling alone in North India for several months, Jalal wandered through landscapes and sacred sites, met masters and musicians, absorbed the sounds, smells and sensations of this unique journey and in doing so invites a new way of listening to the world. From this experience emerged an intimate, contemplative, and profound repertoire, where the flute becomes the vehicle for an inner journey rooted in the breath of life.​

Landscapes of Eternity also draws on Jalal’s many years of exploring the intricacies of Hindustani music and the sensory and imaginative worlds it evokes. The instrumentation blends modern and classical elements, and she brings together Indian classical musicians Samrat Pandit on vocals, Sougata Roy Chowdhury on sarod and Nabankur Bhattacharya on tablas with Franco-Brazilian pianist Leonardo Montana, Brazilian drummer Zaza Desiderio and Flo Comment on tanpura, to create a sound that is both current yet grounded in tradition.