EXPERIENCE ARAB MUSIC INSTRUCTION FROM MASTER TEACHING ARTISTS!
Led by music director and violin virtuoso HANNA KHOURY with percussionist HAFEZ KOTAIN and cellist/maqam theory specialist KINAN ABOU-AFACH, the Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble and Philadelphia Arab Percussion Ensembles are community ensembles open to middle/high school and college students and adults. Singers and percussionists of all skill levels and intermediate to advanced instrumentalists (must read music) of strings and wind are invited to join. See 2015 post by Penn student Ariel Koren.
This program is offered in partnership with University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Music and Greenfield Intercultural Center.
To Register:
• Choir I (beginner/non Arabic speaker): 6-7pm and Choir II (advanced/native Arabic): 7-8pm with Hanna Khoury
• Percussion: 6-7pm (advanced level) and 7-8pm (beginner-intermediate level) with Hafez Kotain
• Instrumentalists (wind/string & select percussionists): 8-9pm led by Hanna Khoury with Kinan Abou-afach and Hafez Kotain
Fees:* $350 for Fall Semester (14 sessions):
Sept 1, Sept 8, Sept 15, Sept 22, Sept 29, Oct 13, Oct 20, Oct 27, Nov 3, Nov 10, Nov 17, (Tuesday) Nov 22, Dec 1, and Dec 8: Concert at UPenn
* NOTE:
• No fee required for enrolled UPenn students who can take it for .5 credit: Arab Music Ensemble Course–MUSC 007
• DISCOUNTED FEE FOR NON-PENN COLLEGE STUDENTS: $200 (inquire about payment options)
Photos from Spring 2016:
Comments from past participants:
I absolutely loved the diversity of songs that we sang and the contextualization, not only in geography, but also in cultural and historical significance that was provided. I think that in a time when the region of the Middle East is primarily discussed as a monolithic area of the world ravaged by violence, it was incredible to gain an appreciation for the great variety of unique cultures, artists, and communities that exist in the different countries that make up the region. – Brendan
Learning the lyrics of famous Arabic songs in their native tongue and reading the English translation on the side allows me to immerse myself more completely into this beautiful culture while simultaneously noting similarities and differences between these songs and the music and culture of America. – Connie
Given my familiarity with the language what most shocked me at the final performance and throughout the semester was seeing so many non Arabic speakers learn to properly pronounce and then sing several songs in the language. It was surreal to suddenly see my friends, most of whom only speak English, singing along in Arabic and getting so many of the difficult pronunciations, like the ع sound, right. – Sufyan
