Co-presented with MB1800 (Music Before 1800 – the longest-running early music concert series in New York City)

After our sold out debut co-presentation with MB1800 featuring Ballaké Sissoko and Derek Gripper, we are pleased to be back at Corpus Christi Church presenting this collaboration between Sabil and Vincent Ségal.

Sabîl is a Palestinian duo composed of percussionist Youssef Hbeisch and oud player/composer Ahmad Al Khatib, two masters of traditional Arabic music known for their adventurous musical collaborations across genres and borders. Here they team up with acclaimed French cellist Vincent Ségal, also known for his cross-cultural music-making — most famously with Malian kora master Ballaké Sissoko — for the U.S. debut of their new album Tawaf. The word “tawaf” means “to go around” in Arabic, and refers to a key ritual in the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, as well as the interplay between these three master musicians. Together they cast a subtle, meditative spell while blurring the line between Arabic and Western classical traditions.

The COLLABORATIONS series presents cross-cultural musical explorations and collaborations. This series often explores how the music of artists from one culture has influenced the music of another culture, or the music of seemingly widely varying cultures can be strikingly similar or complementary.