The 21C Music Festival: Giving Wings to the Better Angels of Our Nature - Page 6 of 6 - Toronto Music Report
Danilo Pérez brought with him a very unique group of musicians - the Global Messengers - who comprised erstwhile neophytes from the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, which he founded, and included (in addition to the pianist and musical director, vocalist Farayi Malek, violinist Layth Sidiq, cellist Naseem Alatrash, percussion colourist Tareq Rantisi and Vasilis Kostas, who plays the laouto (an Grecian version of the Middle Eastern "oud" - a kind of instrument evolved - it would seem from its harmonic range and sound - by marrying the tiple and the classical guitar.