ZiLZALA
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Led by award-winning vocalist/composer Christiane Karam, the ZilZALA Middle Eastern Ensemble is an East-Coast based World Music group that draws from several musical cultures to re-interpret traditional Arabic and Balkan Music, as well as develop original material. The outcome is a powerful and uplifting blend of Eastern and Western influences that creates a truly unique musical experience. The ZilZALA Ensemble has been playing to packed houses in Boston and New York, and is a two-time nominee for Best World Music Act in Boston by the Phoenix Reader's Choice Poll, and 2006 first Runner Up. Their debut album 'Songs for the People' was nominated for Best Traditional Album at the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards.
ZilZALA has had the pleasure to count beautiful musicians and people among its members and the collective keeps growing and moving forward. Among those are Omar Harb, Peter Walden, Karim Nagi, Matt Kilmer, Tony Escapa, Eric Doob, Pedro Ito, Bridget Robbins, Aboud Agha, Dimitris Mikelis, Eylem Basaldi, Anastassia Zachariadou, Theodoulos Vakanas, Petr Cancura, GIacomo Merega, Michael Winograd, Sabi Saltiel, Helen Sherrah-Davies, Tyreek Jackson and Bulut Gulen. In addition to its current personnel, ZilZALA also continues to collaborate with founding member Panagiotis Andreou, as well as Ismail Lumanovski, Engin Gunaydin, and Tupac Mantilla.
ZilZALA embraces the traditions it celebrates while exploring and pushing the boundaries of middle eastern fusion music. Go to Calendar for more details on their upcoming performances!
Current Personnel:
Christiane Karam (Voice, Percussion, Compositions)
Jussi Reijonen (Oud, Guitar)
Layth Sidiq (Voice, Violin)
Naseem Alatrash (Cello)
Tareq Rantisi (Percussion)