When Habi…bi… reigns

Anuradha Abeysekera

They brought the music of the deserts to Jaffna and offered to spectators an amazing Arabic musical treat at the Jaffna Music Festival 2013. Sabreen Association is an organization of all artistic backgrounds and disciplines that works hard in protecting and promoting traditional music and art forms in war troubled Palestine territories including Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.

They performed with unique Arabic fret-less string instrument ‘oud’, traditional Arabic percussion and wood winds accompanied by beautiful female vocalist Samah Mustafa in Jaffna. The delicate drum works of John Robert Handal, Charlie Rishmawi’s oud sounds and Samaha’s magical vocals fascinated the audience with their performance. Dance craze struck the audience as the group sings the famous Arabic song Habi…bi. Crowds enjoyed in singing and dancing where they ended up screaming for more at the end. Robert and Charlie are no strangers for Sri Lanka as they have been regulars at previous Galle and Jaffna music festivals. Their previous Galle appearance decorated with some exciting Arabic traditional dances by folklore debkeh and contemporary dance maestro Mohammad Abu Hamdah left a lasting memory in the minds of many spectators.

It was interesting to see the audience joining in singing the choruses with the group making the performance so live and interactive. Their songs included some familiar terms to the local audience including ku ku kooo, hele where locals had the fun of making a big noise during the performance.

Sabreen Association is famous for their live performances, networking artists, school oriented educational and public music productions in their territory. It is a prominent artistic organization engaged in fostering and showcasing traditional Arabic artistry in the world.

“We really enjoy performing here in Sri Lanka. The audience is amazing. They are always willing to join and it is very encouraging for us to perform. Whether in Galle or Jaffna the crowds are very friendly and treating us nicely. It’s great to have a big variety of cultures at one place. We too enjoy other performances as spectators and that is a unique opportunity this event offers to artistes,” the oud player Charlie explained.

Sabreen Association	When ‘music of deserts’ echo in Jaffna....