An Evening of Arab Music

Free and open to the public. Thursday, December 10, 2009 from 7:30 – 9:00 pm in the Barn. Co-sponsored by Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture.

An evening of Arab music, cultural exchange, and conversation, featuring Hanna Khoury on violin, Adeeb Refela on oud, and Hafez El Ali Koatin on percussion. Donations to support the musicians and the work of Al Bustan Seeds of Culture will be gratefully accepted.

Three master Arab musicians, all local Philadelphia residents, all members of the Arabesque Music Ensemble, playing acoustic music, appropriate for adults and families with children.

Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture: educating about Arabic language, arts, and culture

Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture, a non-profit organization in Philadelphia that educates youth about Arabic language, arts, and culture.  Our music program includes presentation of master Arab musicians and instruction in percussion and classical Arab music. Al-Bustan, Arabic for "the garden" is a secular organization that seeks to promote cross-cultural understanding and exchange through the arts.

The Arabesque Music Ensemble: an "amazingly smooth sound"

The Arabesque Music Ensemble (formerly the Chicago Classical Oriental Ensemble) consists of professional musicians from several countries in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa who perform classical music from the Arabic traditions. The Arabic Music Ensemble represents a unique experience of classical Oriental music in the United States. The AME has enjoyed critical acclaim from the American press; the Washington Post cited the blending of the vocalists' "amazingly smooth sound with the ensemble's precise rhythms and perfect intonation."

To learn more, contact Walter Hjelt Sullivan at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or 610-566-4507 (800-742-3150, toll-free), ext. 160.