Each of these tracks features fast, exciting and sophisticated Iranian and Middle Eastern Percussion. The intricate rhythms and intriguing interplays between the traditional tombak, daf, dhol, darbuka, and cajon are expertly performed by Ramin Rahimi. Ramin Rahimi (b. 1969) has been a professional drummer and percussionist for over twenty years. He has been teaching drums and percussion at the Golpa Music Institute in Tehran since 1996. He also played cello with the Tehran Symphony Orchestra for several years. His group Tapesh, featured on this album, was established in 1998. In the studio Ramin plays most of the instruments himself, but for live concerts Tapesh becomes a 25-member ensemble plus guest musicians.

Hossein Farjami has long been one of the most respected and best-loved Iranian musicians. He combines natural talent with rigorous discipline, and musicianship with professional ethics. Born in Teheran, Iran, in 1944, he started his musical studies at the age of 13, and his life has been devoted to music ever since. For the past five decades he has been based in London, where he has achieved a high reputation, not only among the large Iranian community living in the West, but throughout the Middle East. Anxious to pass on his skills and experiences to the next generation, Farjami is also an inspiring teacher, at once patient and rigorous. Apart from santur, ud and percussion he teaches classical Iranian singing and musical theory, while still finding time for composing, arranging, and recording. The present album is dedicated to Iranian traditional folk music. The simple, soulful melodies are rich in emotional nuances which Farjami conveys with his subtle arrangements and masterly playing. Like all genuine folk music these tunes have a universal appeal- to the heart, which is our natural home.

An album of soulful compositions with heartfelt melodies, each piece highlighting a particular Egyptian instrument. Following Hossam Ramzy's high standard in dance pieces it washes onto the shores of world music with a hypnotic and exotic flavor. Includes four bonus practice tracks for dancers, and explanations to each of the songs.

Born 1969 in Baghdad, Iraq, performer, composer and music consultant Ahmed Mukhtar has played the oud since age ten. He first worked with many traditional music groups and musicians in Baghdad, later studying in both Syria and Britain. From 1990 he's become a performer and teacher, touring the Middle East, Europe and the US. He currently teaches oud, percussion and Arabic music theory at several schools in London. The music on Babylonian Fingers, rooted in rich and complex Iraqi traditions and Middle Eastern music, is based on maqams and rhythms from ancient Babylon to the present.

Lutz Cassel came in touch with the culture of his ancestors for the first time in the early 1960s. This was during song contests at the Castle “Waldeck” in Germany. Although he had no idea of his background (he had been raised in the Christian faith) the music touched him deeply and from this time onwards he began to collect everything connected with Jewish culture and especially with Jewish music and to adapt it for his performances in folk clubs. Step by step he developed a repertoire of songs and also the idea to describe the history of the Jewish people and its music and culture. By and by Lutz started to season his performances with jokes, anecdotes and stories from the thousands of years of history of this people, which consists of more than just the Bible, the Roman Empire and the Holocaust. Lutz was often dissatisfied with the fact that singers of Yiddish songs in Germany generally only described the modern history of the Jews. The origins of the songs were not explained and therefore only a few people understood their meaning. His successes in many small cabarets encouraged him to combine history, stories and music. He did this not in the then popular way of many singer/songwriters, with a moralizing undertone, but with humor and irony- the typical self-irony of Jewish humor. This release is a live recording of a concert which took place in the Hamburg Music Hall for the Hanukkah Celebration of 1986.

Founded in 1926, the London Jewish Male Choir enjoys a reputation for its performance of the broad spectrum of Jewish music- cantorial/liturgical, Yiddish, Ladino, Israeli and Chassidic- to a wide range of audiences. Throughout its more than 90 years, the LJMC has travelled extensively throughout the UK and has performed in London’s most prestigious concert halls. It has also taken part in national and international television and radio broadcasts for the BBC, ITV, and Channel 4. This collection captures a snapshot of the choir over its 90-plus years. In selecting the pieces, we have attempted to show the character and reflect the diverse nature of the LJMC’s repertoire, soloists, conductors, accompanists and musical styles. Cantors featured include Moshe Korn, Steven Leas, and Robert Brody. Accompanists include Shir and Jeremy Limb.

This album, composed by Majid Derakhshani and sung by Zohreh Jooya, is based on poems of the Persian mystics Mowlana Rumi, Hafiz and Saadi. It is a blend of classical Persian music with the colors and sounds of today; an unconventional combination of Oriental and European instruments. It represents a new musical direction: evocative and contemplative melodies, a fusion of oriental and occidental rhythms and sounds which envelop the soul with a gentle, velvety caress. Traditional rhythms and sounds with contemporary aesthetics. It is the belief and the truth in these poems which connects the soul with God. The realization of a new world evolves from the reading of these verses. Realism and mysticism are part of a whole, in which the profane and the holy, human and Divine love, senses and spirit become one. Majid Derakhshani was born in Iran into an artistic family. He studied string instruments and composition at the University of Teheran. After moving to Germany he founded the Nova music school in Cologne. He has given many highly-respected performances at international festivals and at radio stations all over the world. Today he is considered one of the best tar players in Iran.

‘Masters of the Arabian Flute’, produced by Hossam Ramzy, is an album of haunting and beautiful atmospheric music with nay and kawala, keyboards, bass, mizmar, piano and percussion. + Mohamed Naiem, born in Port-Said on the northern edge of the Suez Canal, has demonstrated a rare talent for playing the nay and kawala, very difficult instruments to play, and it is rare to find someone who plays both flutes with such precision, talent and soul-captivating spirituality. + He has recorded on several of Hossam’s productions and has done live radio and TV recordings with the best Shaabi singers.

Recorded by the ethnic folk music expert and producer Deben Bhattacharya in the year of his death (2001) for the film “Music According to Deben Bhattacharya”, this album of field recordings focuses on the Murshidi (spiritual master) singers from Bangladesh. Devotional rites and esoteric poetry set in folk music, the melodies are often nostalgic and slow. Sometimes, as can be heard on this album, the rhythm is made faster so as to make the songs more attractive. Extensive information about the history, music and instruments can be found in the accompanying booklet.

This fun release features both old and new songs and dances from Israel, presented with energy and enthusiasm by Gevatron and by Effi Netzer and Yonathan Gabay. The music is from modern Israel, from the Kibbutz and with Eastern European, Mediterranean and Arabic influence. The Gevatron are representatives of Israeli folk music and songs of the good and lovely Israel. The group was established in 1948, and has since been composed of members of the Kibbutz and its surrounding area. Effi Netzer is a musician, composer, and music director. Choreographer Yonathan Gabay was one of the pillars of Israeli dancing, who passed away in 2011. He left us with a legacy of unforgettable Israeli dances.

Sufism broadly refers to the esoteric Islamic tradition represented by many strains, most of whom explain the creation of the universe with the principle of Unity of Being. The Sufi understanding is that God is the Sole Being and that all creatures manifest reflections of His Being. Music has always been part of religious rituals, producing forms and styles that remain as basic patterns of the society's musical tradition. Some of the Sufi branches utilized music as a significant spiritual training method whereas some other Sufis relied on other techniques. The Mevlevi order, which follows the path of Rumi, is a leading example of a Sufi branch that accompanies the inner teachings by intensely using the medium of music. Turkish Sufi music has been perfected throughout the ages across many countries. There are two types of Turkish Sufi music: the music employed at the mosque and at the tekke, or convent. This album features relaxing Sufi music recorded in Turkey. These works are played at the tekke at ceremonies of the whirling dervishes, as well as some never before recorded music commonly played in Turkish mosques.

A popular Jewish music quartet from London, Shir are commonly called a klezmer group, but describe themselves as playing “Complete Jewish Music” – Israeli, Ladino, Yiddish, Mizrahi, Sephardi, simcha as well as klezmer and even liturgical, and do not consider themselves pinned down to any one style. + ‘From The Heart’ features a soulful selection of Jewish Ashkenazi folk music, from energetic Klezmer instrumentals to story-laden Yiddish songs via synagogue prayers to the optimism of early Israeli songs. + Shir’s music is the story of the Jews of Eastern Europe.

The distinctive sound of Israeli folk music has charmed listeners across the globe for centuries. With this album, you can bring the music right into your living room, regardless of what country you call home. These popular songs come from the best-known Israeli composers, such as Effi Netzer, Nurit Hirsh, HaGevatron, and more. The booklet includes transcribed Hebrew lyrics, as well as English translations.

The santoor is one of the oldest instruments in the world, originating in the Middle East. It is among the simplest stringed instruments, belonging to the category of zithers. The strings are struck with two hammers, called mesrabs. The name santoor first appeared in an eleventh century poem by the Iranian Manucheri. The instrument itself was not depicted until the thirteenth century where we find it in a drawing. The wall paintings of Chehel Sotun, the “catalogue” of Safauad musical instruments, also depict the santoor. It is also found in later paintings and photographs from the Qasar period. During the twentieth century the santoor gained much popularity and is now one of the major instruments in Iran. Hossein Farjami has long counted among the most respected and best-loved Iranian musicians. He combines natural talent with rigorous discipline, and musicianship with professional ethics. Born in Teheran, Iran, he started his musical studies at the age of 13, and his life has been devoted to music ever since. For the past five decades he has been based in London, where he has achieved a high reputation, not only among the large Iranian community living in the West, but throughout the Middle East as well.

This record is a panorama of contemporary Turkish music. As such it includes traditional music - folk and classical - and also new popular music, in which Western, Indian och North African influences are combined. The music group Sameyda consists of six eminent Turkish musicians, all residing in Sweden at the time of this recoding. The group was founded by singer Sevinc Uygur, who also leads the group. Uygur also picked out the repertoire for the group, a great part of which she copied from the Turkish Radio's Folk Music Orchestras, a kind of modern versions of folk songs with strong melodies and rhythms. Many of the lyrics are humoristic and light spirited, built up around rhymes and jingles, and with love as a general theme.