I haven’t posted to this site for ages, so thought I’d add an update. A little over a year ago, I was invited by Fouad Sawa to join his group Al Salam for a performance at the Center for World Music. This has so far been an amazing adventure into Arabic music. I’ve finally learned several Arabic classics I’ve been meaning to learn for years (including Inta Omri and Alf Leyla Wa Leyla) along with over 100 other pieces ranging from Iraqi folk songs to Golden Age Egyptian classics to top of the charts Arabic pop songs. The Center for World Music concert last April included Fouad (oud), Rafi Nmr(voice), Andy Semaan (keyboard), and Emad Semaan (darbuka). Since then, Richard Johnson has joined us on ney and we’ve done several more concerts. It has been a challenge learning all the new repertoire, but I’ve been enjoying the process of discovering new pieces that I love and working with a great group of musicians.