Al compas del mundo - programa #105 - Palestinian and Arab music

[Featuring Dahmane el-Harrachi] - Had a good day: slept in; got to the gym; had Murray’s recipe cocktail (the pink badger); delicious chicken tostadas for dinner; and Claudia’s best-in-the-world strawberry pie for dessert…and another 500 or so Palestinian non-combatants died. I am perplexed and bewildered at the impenetrable wisdom of our fate. Take your pick of war zones at this moment – there’s no shortage – and attempt to imagine the insanity. As I write this and if you’re reading it, we are fortuitous beyond words to live where violent death and destruction are headlines from somewhere else. Did you catch the 49ers game on Sunday against Philadelphia? We killed ‘em!

This week’s Al compas del mundo (World Beats) radio program represents my feeble attempt at bridging cultural divides. They say “familiarity breeds contempt,” but maybe, just maybe, hearing this music will serve to open minds and lessen poorly-conceived biases. If you are unfamiliar with Arab music, and this is just a small sampling of what exists, give it a listen and try to envision where it comes from. As rhythm & blues/jazz singer Fontella Bass, once pronounced: “When God blew the breath of life into you, he did the same thing for me. We are the same, but we are different.” -J.H.

Run list for Palestinian and Arab music episode - First broadcast 12-07-23

01 Palestinian Folk Troupe - Ragaa Aabalady (Palestine)

02 Dahmane el Harrachi - Alach Aqli Methaoual (Algeria)

03 Abdelmajid Meskoud - El Bahdja (Algeria) عبد المجيد مسكود – البهجة

04 Dudu Tassa & The Kuwaitis - Walla Ajabni Jamalak (Iraq and Israel)

05 Salamat - Leyl Y A Bo Elyali (Egypt)

06 Abdulaziz al-'Ameeri and Ahmed al-Jabari - Risa'il (Sudan) عبدالعزيز العميري واحمد الجابري – رسائل

07 Lotfi Bouchnak - Ritek Ma Naaref Ouine (Tunisia)

08 أغاني فلسطينية قديمة رائعة (Palestine)

09 فيروز سالوني الناس Fairuz – Salouni an-Nas (Lebanon)

10 Talal al-Madah - Intizari Tal (Saudi Arabia)

11 شفت ذيك الغزل عبد الكريم المندي Abdelkarim al-Hindy (Yemen)

12 Yasser Habeeb - Elama (Arab Emirates)

13 يا زارعين السمسم - الفنون الشعبية Palestinian Folk Troupe (Palestine)

Palestine lives

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