With his suit, tie, glasses and receding hair, Maurice el Medioni came on looking more like a jovial retired banker than one of the great veteran fusion exponents of the north African music scene. Then he sat at the grand piano, and the image instantly changed. He started out with a burst of gently lyrical, delicate solo work, and then there was a nod of his head, a flurry of percussive chords, and he was off into anything from Algerian and Moroccan dance songs to echoes of Latin styles, boogie-woogie and R&B, show tunes or French cabaret. Across the stage, a North African trio playing drums, bass and darbuka hand drum responded by kicking in with insistent percussive backing.
El Medioni is now 77, and a reminder that there was a time when there was harmony between Jews and Muslims even in Algeria, where he was born in the port city of Oran. He started out playing in the bars, and was involved in the early Rai scene, impressing the likes of Oran's greatest star, Khaled. Like most Algerian Jews, he was forced to leave after independence, and established a new and highly successful career on the Parisian cabaret scene.
Now - following an appearance on Khaled's last album, Yah Rayi, and a new album of his own, Descarga Oriental, which was produced by the Cuban percussionist Roberto Rodriguez - Medioni seems set to win over a new audience.
His show was a success, but not without its problems. The sound balance was often atrocious, and only in the second half was it possible to fully appreciate his piano work against the noisy backing trio, despite his energetic, attacking playing. Next time round, he could do with the help of a trumpeter, as on the new album, and he might even consider whether it's time to bring on an extra vocalist.
El Medioni has written some fine songs, including the reflective, autobiographical Oran Oran, but there were times when his voice sounded more suitable for cabaret than thoughtful ballads or dance songs. But what makes him special is his piano work, and that's thankfully as powerful as ever.
· At the Michael Tippetts Centre, Bath, on Sunday. Box office: 01225 463362.
