The Al-Firdaus Ensemble from Granada, Spain will be performing at Marvin Center Ballroom on Sunday November 18th. The Al-Firdaus Ensemble’s compositions hails a rich heritage from thirteen century Andalusian Classical music in addition to original compositions with Celtic, Flamenco, Arabic, and Turkish influences.
The group takes its inspiration from the word Firdaus, which is the Arabic name, of Persian origin, for the most elevated abode in Paradise. The intercultural nature of this name reflects the character of the group in which musicians from different countries and cultural backgrounds are brought together with one purpose. Just as the musicians tune their instruments, so they need to tune their hearts to receive the inspiration of the moment and transmit that to the audience. The traditional Arabic term for this kind of music is sama` which could be translated as “the art of listening”.