Rahim Alhaj was born and raised in Baghdad and began studying the oud when he was nine years old. He attended the Baghdad Conservatory of Fine Arts, where he trained under the renowned Munir Bashir, considered by many to be one of the greatest oud players ever. In 1991, after the first Gulf War, Alhaj was forced to leave Iraq because of his political activism against the Saddam Hussein regime. He resides today in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Alhaj's music delicately combines traditional Iraqi scales with contemporary styling and influence. Here he talks about the importance of music in understanding Iraqi culture.

As received from his teachers and transformed by his considerable musical gifts and life experience, Rahim AlHaj carries on a significant strand of Iraqi musical tradition toward future generations—in his own way, in his own time. AlHaj studied music in Baghdad with Munir Bashir and other great teacher-performers. His extended improvisations on the oud, accompanied on Near Eastern percussion by Souhail Kaspar, include uniquely Iraqi pieces. Together they represent a proud tradition's meeting with modernity. Extensive bilingual notes, 32-page booklet. 73 minutes.