Maqam Fest showcases six ensembles from New York and around the U.S., each bringing its own unique approach and variation on maqam music. Developed more than a millennium ago, maqam is a complex system of musical modes and represents one of the great legacies of the Arab-Islamic world. Maqam pervades the musical cultures from the Maghreb (Northwest Africa) to Western China, from the Balkans to the Sudan. Maqam Fest 2013 celebrates a line-up that pays tribute to this long-honored tradition and…See More

Maqam Fest showcases six ensembles from New York and around the U.S., each bringing its own unique approach and variation on maqam music. Developed more than a millennium ago, maqam is a complex system of musical modes and represents one of the great legacies of the Arab-Islamic world. Maqam pervades the musical cultures from the Maghreb (Northwest Africa) to Western China, from the Balkans to the Sudan. Maqam Fest 2013 celebrates a line-up that pays tribute to this long-honored tradition and…See More

Alwan for the Arts, New York’s leader in promoting the diverse culture and arts of the Middle East, presents So You Think You Can Dabkeh, a series exploring the traditional and popular line dances of the Levant region of the Middle East. Through participatory and performance events in Manhattan and Brooklyn from September 8 - October 13, 2012, Alwan will celebrate one of the most publicly performed and beloved traditional dances of Arab Americans. The events are open to the public and funded in…See More

Co-presented with 3rdi NY and CINEMAROSA Inspired by an article in the French press, Algerian-born writer/director Amor Hakkar (who also plays Mohsen) explores the relationship of two men as it develops amid a repressive regime. After escaping Iran, where their relationship means a death sentence, Hassan and Mohsen make it all the way to France. While stopped over in a small town to await their train to Paris, Mohsen befriends the lonely, but warm, Yolande, who offers him employment, kindness,…See More

Poetic and multi-layered, Bab'Aziz - The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul is the latest film from Tunisian writer and director Nacer Khemir. The story unfolds as the blind dervish Bab'Aziz (Parviz Shahinkhou) and his granddaughter Ishtar (Maryam Hamid) cross the desert in search of the great reunion of dervishes that takes place only once every thirty years. Side-by-side, the old man and the child wander for days across wide seas of sand with only their faith to guide them. To entertain his…See More

Poetic and multi-layered, Bab'Aziz - The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul is the latest film from Tunisian writer and director Nacer Khemir. The story unfolds as the blind dervish Bab'Aziz (Parviz Shahinkhou) and his granddaughter Ishtar (Maryam Hamid) cross the desert in search of the great reunion of dervishes that takes place only once every thirty years. Side-by-side, the old man and the child wander for days across wide seas of sand with only their faith to guide them. To entertain his…See More

In this concert Lebanese musician and composer Marcel Khalife and Al Mayadine Ensemble present the debut composition of Mahmoud Darwish's later poetic work, which is a moving reflection—part autobiography, part lyrical elegy—by one of the most transcendent poets of the Arab world. Khalife has been a stupendous presenter of the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish, an urgent poetry that lends itself well to Khalife's lyrically molded compositions and vocal, yet tender and reflective virtuosity. The distant…See More

In this concert Lebanese musician and composer Marcel Khalife and Al Mayadine Ensemble present the debut composition of Mahmoud Darwish's later poetic work, which is a moving reflection—part autobiography, part lyrical elegy—by one of the most transcendent poets of the Arab world. Khalife has been a stupendous presenter of the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish, an urgent poetry that lends itself well to Khalife's lyrically molded compositions and vocal, yet tender and reflective virtuosity. The distant…See More