Adam Maalouf is a Lebanese-American multi-instrumentalist and composer. His cross-genre style of music forms a common thread between the cultures of the East and West. Maalouf’s playing style on the pantam represents the cross-pollination of diverse influences, including western classical, Jazz, Arabic, and Indian classical music and electronica. Pan-tam is the name of the "flying saucer" instrument invented in the year 2000, and the word stems from the combination of the Pan from Trinidad, and the Ghatam (clay pot drum) from South India.
Adam has shared his music in venues across the world including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, MoMA, St. Basil's Cathedral, Tanglewood, The BANFF Center and Austin City Limits, Gospel, National Sawdust, Pioneer Works, The Stone, Asheville Percussion Festival, Gratitude Migration Festival, Griasdi Festival, Elements Music Festival. As a collaborator, Adam has performed with ensembles such as The Brooklyn Raga Massive, Pink Martini, Ensemble Signal, The Atlanta Symphony, The National Arabic Orchestra, The Gil Evan's Centennial Project, and with artists such as Steve Reich, K’naan, Kygo, Drukmo Gyal Dakini, Lizz Wright, Eugene Frisen, Jamey Haddad, Farah Siraj, Morley and many others. Adam performs regularly as a solo artist and with his world music collaboration "East River".
Adam holds a BA in Percussion Performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY and MBA in Music Business from Berklee School of Music. After school, curiosity drew Adam to India and the Middle East to study under renowned hand-percussion masters Anindo Chatterjee, Rohan Krishnamurthy, River Guerguerian, Glen Velez.
Adam approaches teaching music through a diverse and well-rounded rhythmic and musical vocabulary that will take students on a global journey around the Middle East, India, Cuba, Brazil, and beyond. In 2012 co-created the Asheville Percussion Festival in North Carolina with teacher and mentor River Guerguerian. This is a current and annual event where top percussionists from around the world descend on the peaceful mountain city for one week in June. As a teacher, Adam has led workshops at the Asheville Percussion Festival, Hang Out(USA), Griasdi Festival(Austria) and regularly holds workshops though the Pantam Collective in his hometown of Brooklyn, NY.