| Tamalyn Dallal produced this CD in Zanzibar. Founded in 1905, Ikhwani Safaa is Africa's oldest band. In the beginning, the Sultan sent musicians to Egypt to study and they came back playing classical Arabic music, which was later inspired by Egypt's Golden Age and Ottoman influences. This disc features two bashrafs (instrumentals) and several taarab pieces (poetic love songs) that were adapted for Oriental dance. The artists use entirely acoustic instruments, and the performances possess
such complexity and depth that they become more fascinating with each listen.
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