February 10, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michele Abba
Cal Poly Music Department
805-756-2406; music@calpoly.edu
Cal Poly Arab Music Ensemble to Perform March 5
SAN LUIS OBISPO - The Cal Poly Arab Music Ensemble will perform traditional and contemporary music and dance from the Eastern Mediterranean and larger Middle East at 8 p.m. on Friday, March 5 in the Pavilion of the Performing Arts Center.
The ensemble will perform vocal and instrumental selections by some of the most renowned composers and performers of Arab art music including the legendary Sayyid Darwish of Egypt and the iconic Fairouz of Lebanon.
The program will also feature folkdances directed especially for this performance by San Luis Obispo dance instructors Saundra Sarrouf and Jenna Mitchell.
The 30-member ensemble is under the direction of Music Department faculty member Kenneth S. Habib, a composer and performer specializing in Middle East and American popular music. A suite of his original compositions will also be on the program.
Guest artists include several members of the Los Angeles-based Kan Zaman Ensemble, including director Wael Kakish on buzuq, Lana Khalaf on vocals and Moussa Nasser on qanun. Also on the program will be New York-based performer and teacher Bridget Robbins on nay.
Tickets are $10 for the public and $8 for seniors and students. They are on sale at the Performing Arts Ticket Office 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. To order by phone, call SLO-ARTS (805-756-2787).
A 10 percent discount is given to patrons who buy season tickets to four Music Department events through the Performing Arts Ticket office; a 15 percent discount is given on tickets to five or more events.
The concert is sponsored by the Cal Poly Music Department and College of Liberal Arts. For more information, call the Music Department at 805-756-2406.
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