Andalusia of Love (Andalus al-Hob)
Piney Kesting
Marcel Khalife
2016, Nagam Records, B01BHFPSNA, $12.45 cd.
The music and lyrics of Lebanese composer, singer and 'ud master Marcel Khalife have captivated international audiences since he began performing in the 1970s. Andalusia of Love carries on this extraordinary musical legacy. Khalife collaborated with the renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, whom he calls a "second soul in his heart," for more than four decades until the poet's passing in 2008. In this haunting suite of 14 pieces, Khalife explores Darwish's vision of a renewed Golden Age, harkening back to 10th-century Muslim-ruled al-Andalus, where people of the three Abrahamic religions coexisted peacefully. Performed by the Al Mayadeen Ensemble—Khalife ('ud, vocals), sons Rami (piano) and Bachar (percussion), and Jilbert Yamine (qanun)—this presentation deftly combines Western classical, jazz and traditional Arabic music. "I was compelled to ... break away from the traditional formats of oriental music and song and come up with a more personal musical work," comments Khalife.
You may also be interested in...
Untold Stories of British Muslim Women as Agents of Change
Sociologist Sariya Cheruvallil-Contractor and historian Jamie Gilham present 100 years of Muslim women who have contributed to the dynamism of Islam in Britain.
In the Aftermath of Rome's Collapse, These Communities Shaped the Mediterranean
Three regions of the post-Roman Mediterranean, from 400 CE to 1000 CE—the Latin West, Byzantium and the early Islamic world—are the focus of this work.
Dissolved Monopoly’s Legacy Hinges on How India Honors Its Political Architecture
From the first fortified trading post in northeastern India, historian Rosie Llewellyn-Jones tracks the physical changes wrought by the English East India Company.