Conversation with Istiwanāt Live! Arabic Music Ensemble

John Fenn sits down with Anne K. Rasmussen, Jared Holton, Albert Agha and Anne Elise Thomas of Istiwanāt Live! Arabic Music Ensemble. The group reinterprets music that was originally performed 100 years ago for a transnational industry of Arab, Arab American and international record labels, and which has recently been released into the public domain. The concert is inspired by the "Archive Challenge," an initiative of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, and draws on archived recordings in Loeb Library at Harvard University and the Library of Congress. The performers are all directors of university-based Arab music ensembles. They have challenged themselves to research, transcribe, study, practice and perform new covers of these "golden oldies" and to share them with their students. Performing on 'ud, qanun, violin and percussion (riqq and daff), their takht (or small ensemble) brings the highlights of their research to the concert stage, contextualizing the music and artistry of the past and repurposing it for contemporary audiences. The Homegrown Music Concert Series is part of AFC's ongoing public programming activities highlighting the fields of folklife, ethnomusicology, oral history and related disciplines, foregrounding its archival holdings, and fulfilling its Congressionally-mandated mission.

For transcript and more information, visit https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-11379