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Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Said has been playing percussion for more than thirty-five years. He has played with dancer Aida Nour and with such singers as Mohamed El Helwa, Ali Haggar, and Iman Darwish... more
Moroccan violinist Salah Rhani specializes in the popular musical genres of North Africa, sha’abi and Rai. At the age of 10 he began playing kamanja (Arab violin), which he learned from his brothers,... more
Ghacham hails from the village of Yaroun on the southern border of Lebanon, where families and friends dance debkah at every social gathering, from weddings to birthdays. Ghacham was particularly inf... more
Tabari is a Palestinian vocalist who comes from a family of musicians and singers. He began to learn and play keyboard at age 11 and by age 14 was performing at weddings and parties with many famous s... more
Shumays received a bachelor's degree in music composition from Harvard University before turning to Arab music. He first studied Arab violin under Simon Shaheen in New York (1998-2001), then traveled ... more
Samuel Thomas, performer and ethnomusicologist, holds two Bachelor of Music degrees from Berklee College of Music in Jazz Composition and Performance, a Masters of Music from CUNY-Brooklyn College, an... more
Wilson, the son of the famous Middle Eastern dancer “Serena” of New York City, grew up immersed in the music of Turkey, Greece, Egypt, Armenia and Israel, and played in the New York club scene during ... more
Interview with NPR December 2001
Abboushi grew up in Palestine and moved to America at the age of 16. A graduate with honors from William Paterson University with a B.M. in Jazz Piano Performance, he became more involved in Arab musi... more
Tim Moore grew up in the Midwest, and began playing drums at the age of 12. A natural percussionist, he began performing with different groups early on, gaining experience in a variety of genres inclu... more
Jerusalem-born Tawil is an accomplished Palestinian musician whose areas of expertise include the oud, violin, qanun, and Arab percussion. Zafer performs across the US and in the Middle East and holds... more
