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A Musical Evening with Layali Al-Sham and Issam Rafea
It is with great excitement that Más Amable and Layali Al-Sham are proud to present an evening celebrating the music of the Middle East with former conductor of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music and oud virtuoso, Issam Rafea. This special evening will include a delicious meal, a short story time with the musicians and a musical performance from Layali Al-Sham and Issam Rafea to close out the evening.
The event will be held Saturday April 18th in the city of Tempe. It will take place outdoors in proximity to the highway intersections of the 101 and the US 60. The evening will begin at 6:00pm following a musical performance at 7:00 pm and ending at 8:15
Detailed information including the specific address of the event, menu, and program will be shared via email upon ticket purchase. This will be a beautiful evening and we can’t wait to share it with you. Space is limited.
TICKET INCLUDES:
Entry to the musical event on April 18th beginning from 6:00-8:15
We will be hosting and working together with local Middle Eastern chefs who will be preparing some of their own specialties. Dessert included (Menu will be announced soon)
A short story time with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa and Issam Rafea about their music, story, and lives
Musical performance from Layali Al-Sham and Issam Rafea
ADDITONAL INFORMATION:
Music has always inspired Más Amable, and it is through music that our relationship with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa and Issam Rafea formed. While we’ve been living in what seems like worlds apart from each other, we've connected through a love of music. We believe in the power of art—whether music, food, or culture—to bring goodness, peace, and beauty to our society and neighbors. It can bring people together from all walks of life to connect in peace and experience a goodness that restores our faith in humanity. Our world needs that now, more than ever, and it is our hope that this celebration of music and food is what this evening can accomplish.
As a young kid in high school, I was introduced to Issam Rafea and his work in the Syrian National Orchestra through the song White Flag by Gorillaz. I thought the composition was beautiful and I wanted to hear more! I only found out recently, that during the eruption of the Civil War in Syria, Issam fled and has been living in Chicago. When we connected, I also told him about working with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa who leads the ASU’s Middle East Music Ensemble, Layali Al-Sham. Surprisingly, they were both musicians working in Damascus at a similar time before 2011. They shared having many mutual and warm relationships with other musicians—some dispersed in other parts of the world and some no longer with us. This only excited us more to bring everyone together for an evening celebrating their story, heritage, and music. We are honored to be hosts of these musical artists.
Layali Al-Sham
Layali Al-Sham is a dynamic performance ensemble that celebrates the rich musical traditions of Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA). An ASU community-engaged ensemble, Layali Al-Sham offers an immersive exploration of diverse styles and cultural contexts, members develop performance technique, collaborate in masterclasses, share their talents in concert, and engage with local, national, and international communities through music.
Andrea Shaheen Espinosa
Andrea Shaheen Espinosa is an associate professor in the Arizona State University School for Social Transformation and the Herberger School of Music, Dance, and Theater. Her current research explores the ways that migration, nostalgia, and trauma impact notions of identity and musicking practices within Syrian diasporic communities in the U.S. and Latin America. Her research has been supported by Medici, the Dodson Foundation, and Fulbright, and her recent work has been published in Yearbook for Traditional Music, Review of Middle East Studies, The Double Reed, and Cahiers d’ethnomusicologie. Additionally, Shaheen Espinosa is an active performer of the oboe, English horn, nay, and zurna, and she is the founder and director of ASU’s Middle East music ensemble, Layali Al-Sham.
Issam Rafea
Issam Rafea is an active world class musician, composer and arranger for Syrian TV and Theater since the 1990s. Rafea was Chair of the Arabic Music Department at the High Institute of Music in Damascus and the principal conductor of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music from 2003- 2013. In 1995, he received his bachelor’s degrees in Oud and Double Bass performance and Oriental Conducting from the High Institute of Music in Damascus, where he was also on the faculty teaching Oud.
Among other accomplishments, Rafea is also co-founder and Oudist for the contemporary Arabic music group “Hewar.” He also founded the “Twais Quartet,” a group that performs both original compositions by Rafea and traditional Arabic music. In the spring of 2017 Rafea was an artist-in-residence at Carleton College, MN where he met Gao Hong, a pipa master from China. Together they formed the “Issam Rafea and Gao Hong Duo.” In May of 2018 they released their debut CD “Life As Is – the Blending of Ancient Souls from Syria and China.”
We are honored and humbled to be able to host Issam Rafea in Arizona.
In his own words, “Together, we learn, we connect, we elevate humanity—no shortcuts, just real lessons. Wherever any land becomes your home, give it the best you can.”
To learn more about our honorable guests please visit these links below:
It is with great excitement that Más Amable and Layali Al-Sham are proud to present an evening celebrating the music of the Middle East with former conductor of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music and oud virtuoso, Issam Rafea. This special evening will include a delicious meal, a short story time with the musicians and a musical performance from Layali Al-Sham and Issam Rafea to close out the evening.
The event will be held Saturday April 18th in the city of Tempe. It will take place outdoors in proximity to the highway intersections of the 101 and the US 60. The evening will begin at 6:00pm following a musical performance at 7:00 pm and ending at 8:15
Detailed information including the specific address of the event, menu, and program will be shared via email upon ticket purchase. This will be a beautiful evening and we can’t wait to share it with you. Space is limited.
TICKET INCLUDES:
Entry to the musical event on April 18th beginning from 6:00-8:15
We will be hosting and working together with local Middle Eastern chefs who will be preparing some of their own specialties. Dessert included (Menu will be announced soon)
A short story time with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa and Issam Rafea about their music, story, and lives
Musical performance from Layali Al-Sham and Issam Rafea
ADDITONAL INFORMATION:
Music has always inspired Más Amable, and it is through music that our relationship with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa and Issam Rafea formed. While we’ve been living in what seems like worlds apart from each other, we've connected through a love of music. We believe in the power of art—whether music, food, or culture—to bring goodness, peace, and beauty to our society and neighbors. It can bring people together from all walks of life to connect in peace and experience a goodness that restores our faith in humanity. Our world needs that now, more than ever, and it is our hope that this celebration of music and food is what this evening can accomplish.
As a young kid in high school, I was introduced to Issam Rafea and his work in the Syrian National Orchestra through the song White Flag by Gorillaz. I thought the composition was beautiful and I wanted to hear more! I only found out recently, that during the eruption of the Civil War in Syria, Issam fled and has been living in Chicago. When we connected, I also told him about working with Andrea Shaheen Espinosa who leads the ASU’s Middle East Music Ensemble, Layali Al-Sham. Surprisingly, they were both musicians working in Damascus at a similar time before 2011. They shared having many mutual and warm relationships with other musicians—some dispersed in other parts of the world and some no longer with us. This only excited us more to bring everyone together for an evening celebrating their story, heritage, and music. We are honored to be hosts of these musical artists.
Layali Al-Sham
Layali Al-Sham is a dynamic performance ensemble that celebrates the rich musical traditions of Southwest Asia and North Africa (SWANA). An ASU community-engaged ensemble, Layali Al-Sham offers an immersive exploration of diverse styles and cultural contexts, members develop performance technique, collaborate in masterclasses, share their talents in concert, and engage with local, national, and international communities through music.
Andrea Shaheen Espinosa
Andrea Shaheen Espinosa is an associate professor in the Arizona State University School for Social Transformation and the Herberger School of Music, Dance, and Theater. Her current research explores the ways that migration, nostalgia, and trauma impact notions of identity and musicking practices within Syrian diasporic communities in the U.S. and Latin America. Her research has been supported by Medici, the Dodson Foundation, and Fulbright, and her recent work has been published in Yearbook for Traditional Music, Review of Middle East Studies, The Double Reed, and Cahiers d’ethnomusicologie. Additionally, Shaheen Espinosa is an active performer of the oboe, English horn, nay, and zurna, and she is the founder and director of ASU’s Middle East music ensemble, Layali Al-Sham.
Issam Rafea
Issam Rafea is an active world class musician, composer and arranger for Syrian TV and Theater since the 1990s. Rafea was Chair of the Arabic Music Department at the High Institute of Music in Damascus and the principal conductor of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music from 2003- 2013. In 1995, he received his bachelor’s degrees in Oud and Double Bass performance and Oriental Conducting from the High Institute of Music in Damascus, where he was also on the faculty teaching Oud.
Among other accomplishments, Rafea is also co-founder and Oudist for the contemporary Arabic music group “Hewar.” He also founded the “Twais Quartet,” a group that performs both original compositions by Rafea and traditional Arabic music. In the spring of 2017 Rafea was an artist-in-residence at Carleton College, MN where he met Gao Hong, a pipa master from China. Together they formed the “Issam Rafea and Gao Hong Duo.” In May of 2018 they released their debut CD “Life As Is – the Blending of Ancient Souls from Syria and China.”
We are honored and humbled to be able to host Issam Rafea in Arizona.
In his own words, “Together, we learn, we connect, we elevate humanity—no shortcuts, just real lessons. Wherever any land becomes your home, give it the best you can.”
To learn more about our honorable guests please visit these links below: