Tunisian oud player Dhafer Youssef (born in Téboulba, in the Sahel region, on November 19, 1967) is renowned as much for his virtuosity as for his singing. Based in Paris since 1999, his traditional music blends Andalusian and Sufi fragrances with Western jazz harmonies. His resolutely modern albums for the Enja label, Malak (1999), Electric Sufi (2001) and Digital Prophecy (2003), put him on the jazz map. His international reputation continues to grow with Divine Shadows (2006) and Abu Nawas Rhapsody (2010), released on the Jazzland label. In 2013, the album Birds Requiem, published by Okeh, invited a host of musicians including trumpeter Nils Petter Molvaer and clarinettist Hüsnü Selendirici. Three years after this exercise in fusing jazz and Arabic music, Diwan of Beauty and Odd was released, recorded with American stars such as Mark Guiliana, Ben Williams, Ambrose Akinmusire and Aaron Parks. In 2018, Sounds of Mirrors was inspired by classical Hindu music, while Streets of Mirrors, released in 2023, invites Herbie Hancock, Ambrose Akinmusire, Nguyên Lê, Dave Holland, Vinnie Colaiuta, Marcus Miller and Rakesh Chaurasia. Signed by the German label ACT, the oudist produces Shiraz (2025), dedicated to his wife, film-maker Shiraz Fradi.