Music of the Orient and Occident

Stylistically speaking, jazz, Jewish klezmer music, flamenco, and Balkan folklore have a lot in common. Yet how does one combine German and Moroccan music, or how does an ensemble of Turkish and Greek musicians sound?
This concert series presented Arabic, Jewish and Western musical styles with a view to the Iberian Peninsula and the Balkans where the music of the Orient and Occident still intermingle today. The musicians, all of whom come from widely differing musical backgrounds, performed in joint concerts and engaged in dialogue between musical cultures which seldom come into contact. One of the concerts featured a joint performance of Sardinian musicians with the Macedonian brass band Kocani Orkestar. Performances by musicians from Palestine, Turkey and Greece were also on the programme, as well as a traditional Moroccan ensemble from Rabat which performs at ceremonies for the Sherif royal family.

Artistic director: Ulli Blobel
Musicians: Kocani Orkestar (MK), Ramon Lopez (FR), Okay Temiz (TR), Floros Floridis & Nicky Skopelitis (GR), Vladimir Karparov (BG), Conny Bauer, Uwe Kropinski & Michael Heupel, Majid Bekkas (MA), Ali Keyta (BF), Paolo Fresu & Antonello Salis (IT), Orchestra Popolare (IT), Klezmer Madness, Benjamin Weidekamp Bläserband.

Venues and schedule:
Nikolaikirche Potsdam: 4 Apr. 2009, 10 Oct. 2009
Nikolaisaal Potsdam: 11 Apr. 2009, 8 Oct. 2009
Mutter Fourage Jazzscheune Berlin: 9 Oct. 2009