Bushra El-Turk - Composer

Ensemble Zar

About Ensemble Zar

Comprised of up to 14 of the UK’s finest musicians, Ensemble Zar is a fresh and fearless cross-genre ensemble whose mission is to express the Middle Eastern artistic temperament in its rawest form, and experiment with new sounds in the process. It’s musicians are well-versed in both Eastern and Western idioms, culminating in ancient Western and Asian instruments, equally at home performing complex written contemporary music as well as masters of improvisation, relishing in the spontaneous nature of Oriental music.

Ensemble Zar has performed for the Metta Theatre production of ‘Arab Nights’ (dir. Poppy Burton-Morgan, Soho Theatre production). It has also, most notably, played the live score to the world’s first feature- length silent film animation, The Adventures of Prince Achmed at the Southbank (part of Women of the World Festival - WOW) and Barbican as a Birds Eye View Film Festival commission, for which it received critical acclaim. 2014 saw a performance at Birmingham Symphony Hall and a recording of feature animation film, The Prophet, produced by Salma Hayek Pinault, with music by Gabriel Yared. Most recently it has been on tour with the LOD-produced opera production Woman at Point Zero and is about to premiere OUM - A Son's Quest for his Mother at the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam on 20th March 2025 featuring members Faraz Eshghi Sahrai (Western and Persian stringed instruments), Raphaela Danksagmüller on multiple winds and voice and Bartosz Glowacki to play alongside the renowned Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra.

About the musicians
Each musician is an award-winning master and rebel of his/her own tradition with a natural feel for performing in trans-cultural contexts. Many of whom perform Western classical repertoire as well as traditional Eastern music (folk or classical art music), especially arranged or in its monodic form. All have toured the world performing in prestigious venues such as New York's Carnegie Hall, Southbank, Wigmore Hall, and the renowned Lebanese singer, Fairouz.

Writing for Ensemble Zar

Hyelim Kim

KOREAN TAEGUM

As composer and daegeum (Korean flute) soloist, Dr Hyelim Kim has been using pioneering intercultural/interdisciplinary approaches through rooted in Korean traditional music.
As a daegeum virtuoso, Kim was selected as an ‘emerging artist’ by the Korean Arts Council and as the Kumho Young Artist, has been invited to perform a live session with Nils Frahm on BBC Radio 3’s celebrated Late Junction, and was the soloist on the world premier of a daegeum concertino performed with the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, to name a few.

WEBSITE

Bartosz Glowacki

Accordionist

Bartosz Głowacki is a versatile and charismatic accordionist, praised by The Observer for his exceptional attention to sound quality. A winner of numerous international competitions, he was named Polish Young Musician of the Year 2009 and represented Poland at Eurovision Young Musicians 2010 in Vienna.

He studied at The Royal Academy of Music in London under Prof. Owen Murray, graduating with honours in 2016. In 2024, he completed his studies wth distinction at the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz and is currently pursuing a doctorate at Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce.

As a soloist, Bartosz has performed at renowned venues such as Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall, La Salle Cortot, Oviedo Philharmonic Hall, and Auditorio Nacional in Mexico. He has collaborated with Nigel Kennedy, Trevor Pinnock, Tanita Tikaram, and Manchester Collective and performed with orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and London Sinfonietta.

A recipient of numerous scholarships and awards, he was recognized by the City Music Foundation, Zygmunt Zaleski Foundation, and BBC Music Magazine, which praised his debut album Genesis as "a masterfully curated selection spanning from Scarlatti to Gubaidulina." He premiered Brett Dean’s The Players with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under Vladimir Jurowski.

His latest albums, Music Inspirations by Jerzy Mądrawski and Energico, have won international acclaim, securing awards at Muzyczne Orły and the Swiss International Music Competition. In December 2024, he was featured as a soloist on the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s album dedicated to Brett Dean.

Bartosz’s artistry, versatility, and dedication to excellence make him a standout figure in the contemporary accordion scene.

Youtube - BBC Radio 3 Intune

“'An orchestration of personalities...'”