Conversations with Alex Wakim

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Wakim.

Alex, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I fell in love with music through playing piano – I then realized the magic of film music. Writing for films is an incredible joy, and I really enjoy rising to the challenges inherent in film work.

Getting to create my own sort of narrative experience is something I’ve always been interested (the best part of film music is being a story-teller), and getting to explore that with Dust and Ions, a 90-minute concert experience based on my album (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6dxxzofm-g&list=OLAK5uy_lV4DQYl1faOoizq8RvYFq5TI5X4DsRX4o&index=1&ab_channel=AlexWakim-Topic), my original musical, An American in Beirut, both of which have been featured in several shows, has been a total pleasure.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Of course not. Nothing rewarding is at the end of a smooth road. But I’m so thankful to have had great support along the way. One thing to be sure to do is to interpret quiet moments (where not a ton of work is coming in), as. time to breathe, versus “I’m never gonna get hired again!” And a time to rekindle relationships that maybe haven’t been nurtured in a while. But always having a conversation with the gremlin inside that’s saying ‘you’re not good enough’, etc., is a big part of things.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a composer – I’ve had the privilege to work on neat projects, such as Horizon Forbidden West, ads with Julianne Moore, and having worked in the National Portrait Gallery in DC. I specialize in synthesizing different worlds of music and stating them in a way that feels authentic. I’ve also had films in the Raindance Film Festival, New Orleans Film Festival, Vail Film Festival, and more.

I also have a healthy life as an artist outside of film work, which sets me apart and is a ton of fun. In addition to two albums, Dust and Ions and Chasing Moons (release date 4/14/23), I have a concert experience, Dust and Ions, featuring my music, poetry by award-winning writer Yara Zgheib, and dance. After a wildly successful run in Wichita, KS, we are taking it to NYC on 5/6 and 5/7 at the Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theater.

A trailer can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puVNa2H6st0&ab_channel=AlexWakim
Tickets for the NYC version can be found here: https://wakimproductions.ticketleap.com/dustandions/

I’m so thankful for the films I’ve worked on because they help me grow in ways that enable me to create these kinds of shows. A portion of the proceeds of Dust and Ions goes back to the children in Lebanon via the Kid’s First Association.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Hope the NYC crowd here can make it to the show:) It’s going to be really beautiful. In Yara’s words:

On a July night in 2020, a comet streaked over the Earth’s northern hemisphere. Those who looked up saw something no one else would for the next 7,000 years: Dust and Ions, infinite sky-showering, shimmering stars. On an August night that same year, the Beirut port exploded.

Hundreds killed, thousands injured, millions of hearts decimated, and every day, millions of worlds end in millions of other places, and “we are all in the gutter,” Oscar Wilde said, “but some of us…” choose to look up and see and love and believe in stars, and get into cars and chase after comets, and write songs and poems. Alex wrote an anthem for beauty that crosses skies, transcends borders, pandemics, wars, and the limits of our tiny lives. It’s magnificent, expansive. I just added a few verses.

– Yara Zgheib

Pricing:

• Standard Tickets – $45
• VIP Tickets – $100

Contact Info:

• Website: https://alexwakim.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/musicwakim/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/musicwakim/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@alexwakim
• Tickets: https://wakimproductions.ticketleap.com/dustandions/