In this episode of Quartertones, we interview award-winning violinist, composer, and educator Layth Sidiq at Habibi Festival in NYC. He shares his journey in Arabic music, and discusses his upbringing in a musical family, the evolution of his career, and his role as the artistic director of the New York Arabic Orchestra. He also delves into the improvisational nature of Arabic music, his album "Son of Tigris" and performs three captivating interludes, providing deep insights into maqam and melody.
00:00 Welcome
05:52 Introducing Layth Sidiq
07:07 Layth's Musical Journey
10:57 The New York Arabic Orchestra
15:37 Performance: Ala Shawati Dijla
20:03 Exploring Maqam and Arabic Music
25:21 Performance: Eastern Waves
34:23 Melody vs Harmony in Arabic Music
37:15 Teaching and Learning Music by Ear
41:56 Final Interlude and Improvisation
49:12 Quick Q&A Session
56:22 Future of Arabic Music
59:18 Closing Remarks and Recommendations
Layth Sidiq is a violinist, composer, educator, the artistic director at New York Arabic Orchestra, and the director at Center for Arabic Culture Youth Orchestra Program.
Connect with Layth 👉 https://www.instagram.com/laythsidiq/
Habibi Festival is back for another year at Joe's Pub, bringing Arabs, comrades, and lovers of music together in New York in these difficult times that our nations continue to endure. And for another year, afikra was on stage to speak to the musicians and bring their conversations and performances to you on afikra's Quartertones podcast.
Created with the goal of giving a snapshot of contemporary and traditional music of the South West Asia North Africa (SWANA) region, every year Habibi Festival takes listeners on a journey of the sounds wafting through the airwaves and living rooms of cities spanning Marrakech to Baghdad. This performing arts festival (now in its fourth year) is a collaboration between the Director of Joe's Pub Alex Knowlton, artist/composer/curator Yacine Boulares, and curator/producer Meera Dugal who are bonded by the goal of creating more joyful spaces for performance, conversation, and storytelling from this part of the world.
Follow Habibi Festival 👉 https://www.instagram.com/habibifestival
Hosted by Mikey Muhanna 👉 https://www.instagram.com/mikey_mu
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