JOSEPH BATROUNEY
PERCUSSIONIST

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With an impressive artistic career spanning over a decade, Joseph ‘Zuzu’ Batrouney is one of Melbourne’s most noteworthy percussionists on the Australian music stage. Joseph’s first steps began with studies in jazz and improvisation, including a New York mentorship at the NYU Summer Jazz Improv Workshop. This led to performances with leading Australian artists such as Tony Gould, Sam Keevers, Stephen Magnusson, Riley Lee and Graeme Lyall, at iconic jazz venues including Bennetts Lane, Paris Cat and The Jazzlab.

Not surprisingly, his interest in improvisation and rhythm accompaniment steered him towards Flamenco and the Tedesco brothers who have, since 2015  invited him to perform with Arte Kanela Flamenco on various international and national tours including performances at the Hawkes Bay Arts Festival (NZ) and the recording of Una Noche de Verano, directed by Australian filmmaker Rhys Graham.   

 

With experience playing a myriad of instruments, his repertoire includes playing the drums, Flamenco cajón, Egyptian tarambuka and African djembe, amongst other hand percussive instruments and elements to produce his sound. His career highlights include working with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra for ‘On a Clear Day’ (2013), headlining the Malmbsbury Spring Music Festival with Tony Gould (2012), performing alongside Latin Grammy nominees Diego Guerrero and Nasrine Rahmani (2016), and accompanying Jerez-born Flamenco guitarist Paco Lara, by request, on his 2019 Melbourne tour. In recent times, Joseph recorded his solo project ‘Beat Pack’(2020) following his 2016 debut album ‘Zuzu’, and launched the recording space, Spark Studios.

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