NORA BENAMARA
Singer, composer, vocal coach
DEBUT ALBUM OUT NOW!
Music as a possibility to process things; this has become a matter of course for Nora Benamara. Anyone who delves into the pieces of her group's extraordinary album debut can discover a variety of facets, both lyrically and musically. Some go deep, but still retain a certain degree of lightness, of sensual, joyful expression. "My music was created out of emotion and intuition," the singer, composer and band leader emphasized. The wonderfully poetic texts in turn speak of a lot of reflection, sometimes almost philosophical thinking and daring—even dreaming. Her pieces speak of longing for a home, of utopian places, of doubts, of an intense connection to nature. They are the results of a personal inner "odyssey" as she wrote: "a search for deeper connections, a pursuit of the beautiful and the cathartic in the search for finding one’s place in the world." [...]
Double Moon Records
Limited: Signed CD copy available at: info@norabenamara.com
BIOGRAPHY
Nora Benamara is a singer and composer based in Leipzig, Germany. She was raised in the Paris Region to a multicultural family.
Her projects range from Brazilian jazz and French chanson (duo „Nômade“), to Arabic music (Duo with Aeham Ahmad, debut "Sununu" in 2020), to contemporary jazz and experimental music (including: „Gellért Szabó‘s Ideal Orchestra“ and Clemens Rynkowski‘s „Star Dust Music“).
Her versatility is also related to her jazz studies, which she completed in 2021 at the University of Music Franz Liszt in Weimar. She studied among others with Michael Schiefel, Jeff Cascaro, Frank Möbus, and Stefan Schultze.
In 2020, Nora founded her quartet and took on the role of bandleader and composer. The band performed at the Festival Women in Jazz Halle in 2021 as part of the next generation virtuell concert series.
On August 23, 2024 Nora Benamara Quartet's debut album "AMNESIA" was released on Double Moon Records & Jazz Thing Next Generation.
MUSIC & BANDS
Nora Benamara Quartet
Alongside talented newcomers of the German jazz scene — Olga Reznichenko on piano, Lorenz Heigenhuber on double bass, and André van der Heide on drums — the German-French singer Nora Benamara explores her diverse musical homes.
Her music narrates an intimate yet universal story, inspired by longing for home, dreams of utopian places, and a mystical connection to nature. Drawing upon influences from classical modernism, contemporary jazz, and experimental pop, Benamara's compositions are characterized by lyrical melodies, minimalist rhythmic structures, and a dynamic energy oscillating between fragility and strength. Enriched by Benamara‘s versatile vocals and the improvisational creativity of her bandmates, the quartet transcends genre boundaries, continuously exploring new, uncharted realms of longing.
The debut album AMNESIA was released on August 23, 2024, now available on all platforms!
© 2023 Lukas Diller
Nora Benamara - vocals, composition
Olga Reznichenko - piano
Lorenz Heigenhuber - double bass
André Van Der Heide - drums
Amnesia - Live Studio 2024
Nômade
The duo Nômade was founded in Weimar in 2016 by Nora Benamara and the Brazilian guitarist Igor Seiji. In this project, the two artists let their different musical worlds collide: French chansons, Brazilian music, classical elements and modern jazz merge here in refreshing arrangements, original compositions and soulful improvisation.
Video wird geladen...
Live at OMA, Weimar - Ne me Quitte Pas (Jacques Brel)
Nora Benamara - vocals
Igor Seiji - guitar, composition, arrangement
feat. Silvino Almeida - guitar
Jürgen Marx, IG JAZZ Arnstadt
Erfurt, Mehlhose, November 1st. A concert before the current forced break with the duo Nômade. A concert with a brilliant vocalist, Nora Benamara, and congenial, Igor Seiji Moriya.
Songs that can awaken longing, touch you, that are full of life, lightness, gravity and beauty. It was a great joy to experience every song and every minute was worth spending time with the two artists. Thank you!
Aeham Ahmad & Nora Benamara
Nora Benamara met the Palestinian-Syrian pianist and singer Aeham Ahmad for the first time in 2018 during one of his solo concerts. Shortly afterwards, the two artists founded a duo project for which Nora Benamara translated and interpreted texts by Aeham Ahmad in German, French and English. Her debut album "Sununu" was released in December 2020 .
Order Sununu here !
Sununu means "swallow". A migratory bird that makes the long journey across the Mediterranean twice a year. A free migrant who lives here and there.
As Sununu, Aeham Ahmad and Nora Benamara also build bridges between two distant worlds. They sing and play freely, in their different languages and styles. In doing so, they tell bittersweet stories of war and of the longing for home and peace.
LIVE AT WOMEN IN JAZZ FESTIVAL HALLE 2021
LIVE AT THEATERSTÜBCHEN KASSEL 2020
Video wird geladen...
Other projects
Gellért Szabó’s Ideal Orchestra
IDEAL ORCHESTRA is an experimental orchestra from Leipzig, Germany. Known for their uncommon instrumentation and will for extreme sound combinations this ensemble is eager to lead the imagination of the audience to a cinematic journey. Every second of music becomes a performative statement of desire.
https://gellertszabo.com
Line-up :
GELLÉRT SZABÓ (CONDUCTING/COMPOSITIONS), ALEJANDRO BARRIA (CEL), FRIEDERIKE BARTEL (SAX), FLOORTJE BELJON (V), NORA BENAMARA (VOC), REBECCA CHAMMAS (VOC), LORENZ BERGLER (BCL), MAXIMILIAN BISCHOFBERGER (VOC), JOHANNES BODE (DR), JOHANNES BUTTLAR (DR), STEPHAN DELLER (KB), GEORG DEMEL (POS), GUSTAV GEISSLER (SAX), BARNABAS HERRMANN (VOC), FELIX KOTHE (DR), CHRISTOPHER KUNZ (SAX), GREGOR LITTKE (POS), SIMON LUCACIU (P), PHILIPP REINSCH (TUBA), STEFFEN ROTH (DR), SUSANNE STOCK (ACC)
Releases:
MONUMENT
von Gellért Szabó's Ideal Orchestra
MONUMENT II
von Gellért Szabó's Ideal Orchestra
MYTHOPOEIA
von Gellért Szabó's Ideal Orchestra
Resident Music Collective „Sternenstaub / Star Dust Music“
Humboldt Forum Berlin - 03 & 04.02.2024
What is the fundamental tone of the universe? What does star dust sound like? This is what the Resident Music Collective is dealing with. Inspired by the immersive exhibition in_finite. Living with Death which was on show at the Humboldt Forum until November 2023, 16 artists from different musical cultures are commenting on the themes of the exhibition: with instruments ranging from the Turkish ney to the West African balafon.
Line-up :
Gesang: Nora Benamara / Cansu Tanrikulu • Gesang und Elektronik: Ganna Gryniva • Cello und Live-Elektronik: Gal Golob / Mathilde Vendramin • Viola / Elektronik: Grégoire Simon • Kontrabass: Christian Cuevas Müller • Kontrabassklarinette: Joachim Striepens • Alphorn / Horn: Katrin Vogel • Ney / Kaval: Mohamad Fityan • Balafon: Aly Keïta • Vibraphon, Berimbau, Gaxixi: Lucas Dorado • Perkussion und Klangstäbe: Paul-Jakob Dinkelacker • Rahmentrommeln, Tombak, Djembe: Ali Hasan • Perkussion und E-Bass: Laura Robles • Körpertambura, Klangschale: Lydia Röder • Automatische Instrumente: Edgardo Rudnitzky • Musikalische Leitung / Theremin: Clemens Rynkowski
© Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss / https://www.humboldtforum.org/de/programm/termin/konzert/sternenstaub-70165/
“ Schwebende Blasen ” by Evelina Lo Pilato
KNALLBRAUSE Festival 2024 - February 23rd & 25th, 2024
Dance choreographies, improvisations and singing - a show on the theme of femininity with influences from the Eastern and Mediterranean world.
Line-up : Evelina Lo Pilato (dance, artistic direction), Nora Benamara (vocals, frame drum)
