A different kind of Jazz

I heard a really interesting musician yesterday evening.  His name is Ali Paris and he plays the Qanun, an instrument described as a 76 string Arab "lap harp." Since it's about 4 feet long and 2 feet wide, it was on a stand, not on his lap. During the concert he explained how his instrument was tuned.  Each of the 76 strings can be tuned to eight different sounds and he played music with major and minor octaves as usual but could also introduce tones that were between major and minor.  He suggested we imagine a piano with green and pink keys between the black and white ones.  Ali Paris has performed all  over the world and his music is an interesting blend of Arab sounds and contemporary jazz and rock.  He was accompanied by a guitarist and a drummer and the music was beautiful. In the printed information that was handed out it said "...he has performed with Chinese concert pianist Lang Lang, Spanish flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia, American vocalist Bobby McFerrin, and American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys." I think that's a pretty amazing variety of musical styles but I can imagine his qanun sounding right with all of them.  Quite an amazing concert.