Al-Andalus Ensemble

Al-Andalus Ensemble is an award-winning husband and wife musical duo that performs contemporary Andalusian music. The ensemble features Tarik Banzi playing oud, ney and darbuka, and Julia Banzi on flamenco guitar.

Tarik Banzi was born in Morocco, and Julia, one of the few well-known female flamenco guitarists, is a native of Denver.

Style

The Al-Andalus Ensemble plays traditional Andalusian music while their contemporary works draw much of its inspiration from the musical traditions rooted in the Classical Andalusian genre of North African, Flamenco, Judeo-Spanish (Ladino), as well as jazz, Classical, South Indian and Western classical music.

Many of the instruments they use in their performance are traditional North African and Middle Eastern instruments: the oud, kamanja, darbuka, tar and rebab, as well as the flamenco cajón, guitar, and palmas and Western instruments such as the flute, saxophone, drum set and piano. Their work is sometimes accompanied by dance performances, including dancers and other world-music specialists.

Robert McBride, music director for Oregon Public Broadcasting, described their music as "something timeless, wonderful and very stimulating."<ref name="aramcoworld"...
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