Graceful Andalus Music

[Senad]

Tarik & Julia Banzi: Al Andalus Ensemble

A graceful and distinctive ensemble straddling continets in its cultural voice, centuries in its array of techniques. Classical Arabic, Sephardic, African, S. Indian & Jazz are clear foundations shadowed by Spains traditional Flamenco music.

Al-Andalus
Between Antiquity & the Renaissance,˜Al-Andalus’ refers to the Islamic empire in Spain which spanned the 8th-15th centuries. A unique moment in world history, Al-Andalus was where three worlds met. Under Moorish rule, Muslims, Jews and Christians lived together in relative peace & harmony inspiring a calm exchange of ideas and cultural flowering. These diverse cultures came together for a cultural explosion forming a unique social fabric.

This Andalusian tradition is our contemporary creative inspiration, a thread connecting many musical and cultural traditions. What is especially unique about Al-Andalus is that in addition to performing traditional Spanish & Arabo-Andalusian works, Al-Andalus also excels in composing contemporary works based on the Andalusian legacy. A creative journey that mirrors cross-cultural communication, subtly uniting sound and movement, merging poetry and fine arts, the old and new are entwined, captivating the audience with colorful intensity and beauty.

The performance group Al-Andalus began with Tarik and Julia Banzi together with Rasgui Boujemaa in Madrid, Spain in 1986 and was officially founded 1989 in Portland, Oregon by Tarik & Julia Banzi and Margarita Bruce. It has performed, given master classes, and offered lecture demonstrations to diverse audiences in Europe and the U.S.A.

A group of 2-9 artists (musicians, singers, dancers, visual artists). The members are from many diverse cultures including African, Arab, Spanish, Sephardic, Hispanic, Persian and South Indian communities. Respectfully uniting the past with the present, performing traditional works from these cultures with native artists as well as create new works uniting our cultural pasts, forging a graceful and distinctive ensemble sound.

A culmination of years of performing together, much of this music was recorded and mixed while the comet Hyakutake filled our northern skies (1996). It is a comet which passes the earth only once every 18,000 years and its presence in the sky filled us with awe and inspiration. We hope this recording illuminates your life the way it has ours. May peace be with you.

[Senad]

A delightful proposition of exquisite music

[Adem]

Notes on Al-Andalus

Written by Tor Eigeland



Valencia
In Valencia and its satellite towns of Manises and Paterna I saw some interesting ruins, though in my opinion they are among the ugliest towns in Spain. One attractive aspect of Manises, however, is its ceramics, especially azulejos—tiles. The Spaniards have never tired of the tiles that the moros brought. The owner of one shop told me that in the little town of Manises alone there are still some 200 ceramics shops or factories. Some, unfortunately, make cheap souvenirs for the tourists, but others still make lovely traditional ware.

There are kilns called moruno, meaning "of the Moors," in narrow, ancient back alleys which reminded me of the oldest parts of Cairo. When I asked the owner of a moruno kiln whether it was the original Moorish one, he said: "Kilns don't last forever. But this one has been rebuilt exactly as the Moors built them, in the same place, and even with some of the same old materials." He added, "The Spanish way of making ceramics is based on the Arab way."

The most attractive ceramics of Manises still come out of the moruno kilns as far as I could see. Some of it is Islamic-style luster-ware, which has a metallic sheen, in traditional designs carefully painted on by hand. In one shop several old ladies made friendly conservation with me as they painted, but they absolutely refused to let me photograph them. Since they were not at all shy, I asked them why. One answered with a smile: "We're not modern. It is an old custom here." So we left it amiably at that as I had done so many times in the Middle East.

I inquired about the patterns they were painting. Where did they come from? Did they have anything to draw from? One of the old ladies raised her hand and tapped her index finger a couple of times on her head. "It comes from here."

Nearby Paterna, as far as I could discover, had only one traditional kiln, but I also spotted an interesting old Arab tower. Driving around the town in circles looking for a way to get to it, I came upon some whitewashed buildings where a narrow staircase seemed to lead up toward the tower between two houses. The view from the top was like looking at the surface of the moon.

Surrounding me over three or four acres of land were whitewashed, round chimneys and equally white walls about a yard high, some circular, some square, all jutting out of the ground. And next to the chimneys and walls TV antennas were also planted in the earth. On closer inspection, by leaning over the tower walls, I could see some big holes. Then I understood. There were underground caves and the walls on the surface were to prevent dirt, dust and water from dropping into these air holes. Whitewashed slopes led down from ground level to an open patio, from which gaily painted doors led into the caves.

I never hesitate to approach strangers in Spain and I asked one woman who was passing about the caves. "Oh, the Arabs made them," she said, "and that was the old watchtower right over there." She pointed to where I had been standing a few minutes before. The woman knew people who lived in one of the caves and she took me to meet them. The cave was spacious, spotlessly whitewashed and clean; it had two bedrooms, a dining room, a living room and a small kitchen as well as a battery-operated television and a record player. It was attractive and also, I learned, rent free. The owners told me that their family had lived there for as long as they knew, "probably since the time of the moros."