Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble

In Fall 2009, Al-Bustan formed the Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble, open to youth and adults of diverse backgrounds interesting in learning to play and sing the classical and traditional repertoire of Arab music. Led by Music Director Hanna Khoury, this community ensemble meets once a week for 3 hours at St. Mary’s Parish Hall located at UPenn campus. The music of the major artist invited each year by Al-Bustan defines the repertoire learned by the Ensemble. In 2010, acclaimed Palestinian musician and composer Simon Shahaeen was the guest artist, and in 2011, acclaimed Lebanese musician, composer and singer Marcel Khalife.

Upon reflection after her first year with the Ensemble, one non-Arab college student who is trained in Western classical music noted: I have been studying violin for 12 years, and this is my first experience with Arab music. . .we learn so much by rote, by ear . . .it’s a slow process to learn how to improvise but it’s very rewarding. I learned a lot of new techniques, new trills, and I also learned to think more lyrically, to be more freer in embellishments, and I think I can take this to whatever music I’m playing.

Philadelphia Arab Percussion Ensemble

Al-Bustan’s music program began with the establishment of a youth percussion ensemble. With funding from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts starting in 2004, followed by support of the National Endowment for the Arts since 2007, a group of school-age students, known as the Al-Bustan Percussion Ensemble, met weekly for rehearsals, learned about Arabic music traditions, developed their technical mastery while composing arrangements on the tableh, daf and riq, and performed at various venues in Philadelphia. As some members of the group entered college, the ensemble transitioned in 2009 and became the Philadelphia Arab Percussion Ensemble led by Master Percussionist Hafez El Ali Kotain.